Kingdom Hearts: Starlight Destiny
by tsukiyoko614
Summary: In a World where only those with strong magic reigns, there is an Academy for people who wishes to become Keyblade Masters, a position given to only the land's strongest magic-users. 15-year-old Roxas and his twin brother, Ventus, are rivals due to their Keyblade wielding abilities. But when Roxas meets the new student, Namine, the World as he knew it would never be the same again.
1. Prologue::Whispers of the Dark::

My first published KH (AU) fanfiction work I worked pretty hard on it~ so, hopefully, you all like it, and if you don't, give me some feedback on how I can improve my story :3 It's actually inspired by me and my friend when we were blabbing about Kingdom Hearts "derp moments." Anyway, enjoy~!

* * *

**::Prologue:: Whispers of the Dark::**

"Old fool." A deep grudging voice echoed.

In the night, rose a grand stone castle, standing in the midst of darkness. Overlooking the lone structure was heart-shaped moon, illuminating the land with its pearl-white glow. Masses of flowers surrounded the lone, proud structure; a cold breeze gently brushed against the courtyard trees and shook them—sweeping them into an embrace. One of the castle's windows was lit with gold, a sign that someone was using the room.

The mysterious voice of the night belonged to a man, who was sitting behind the wooden desk. He was dressed in black from top to bottom—a long trench-coat and heavy boots; his gold eyes were fixed against the files sprawled across the desktop, each clipped with pictures. A dark, sinister smile formed into his lips as the dim light showed off his tan skin, completed with mockery in his irises.

"To think that former headmaster Ansem would so easily entrust me with the Academy…and thus, the future of the Gifted…" He shoved the papers around hastily until a photograph caught his immediate attention—a dark-haired boy with sapphire eyes. "…Only a fool would follow the Last Words of a fool…" He then slapped his large hand on it. Hard.

"So, you're going to dispose his last instructions?" a voice asked.

The man laughed upon hearing those words. With the other hand going down his long white hair, he said, "It is his loss."

Before the new headmaster stood a shadowed figure dressed in a trailing trench-coat. The hood was up, concealing the servant's face and so—his identity.

"Have you completed the mission I've sent you on?" asked the man.

"Yes." answered the mysterious stranger, his voice soft. "I made sure to see the process done."

"Good."

"…Master Xemnas…"

"Yes?"

The shadowed figure's lips pursed tightly together, pausing out of hesitation. "I am not questioning your authority, but what are you intending to do with the Gifted?"

Being slightly pleased with this, Xemnas slowly stood up and crossed his arms. "What am I intending…to do?" He twisted around to see a hanging picture-frame, hanging by the large castle window.

In its wooden frame was an old, faded photo of an elder man with blonde hair. He was standing by a fully-clothed mouse, who was about half his height. They were both smiling at the camera, with bright eyes of light. On the bottom of the picture, there were inked words written as _Ansem and King Mickey._

Xemnas quickly turned away and knocked many of the papers off his desk, revealing not just the brown-haired boy—but also several other youths varying in age.

"This…" A deep, sickening smile crept into the man's lips once again. He eyed the servant wickedly. "…is what I intend to do."

The stranger made his way to the desktop and nearly gasped at the photographs shown to him.

And of course, beneath one of Xemnas' large hands laid the brown-haired boy's photograph; it was lined up neatly against the name…

_Sora._


	2. 01::Xion:: A New Dawn

**01::Xion:: A New Dawn::**

At morning's light, the school bell echoed throughout the entire castle.

It was the start of another normal day, lit with the usual chairs, wooden desks, and students sitting around in black trench-coats.

I sighed, scratching the back of my short black hair.

I've had this hair-do for as long as I remembered.

I sighed again, blowing off a few hair strands from my forehead.

They fell back across my forehead. The _trolls…_

Just when I was about to look out the window at my far left—someone with long, red spiky hair blocked it completely by standing in the way. I glared, irritated by this uninvited presence and looked up.

Of course—it was Axel.

"Hey!" I shouted. "Move out of the way!"

"What are you talking about?" teased Axel. "This is Roxas' seat for the week! Remember the _deal _with him on Saturday? He practically won the ice cream stick game."

_Must you __**rub **__it in my face __**AGAIN?! **_I thought, venomously.

"Stop that!" I tried turning my head, so he could stop poking at my cheek. "Glaring won't get you anywhere, Xion! And how many times must I tell you that it's _**NOT**_ cute?" Axel then tapped his finger against the side of his head._**"**__**Got that memorized?"**_

"I don't want to be **cute!" **I pouted. "I never _**asked **_to be cute, anyway!"

A soft laugh from behind.

Startled by this new presence, I slowly turned.

_**"Such **_a kid." I heard Axel taunt.

Just as I thought, it was Riku—an older boy with long white hair and glazed cool eyes. With feet propped up at the empty desk before him, he had been watching me and Axel for some time now. Knowing this…only made my neck hot with fire.

Riku always sat at the very back of the classroom, and though he never belonged to such an _ordinary _place like us Nobodies, he would drop by randomly. Not even the teachers could stop him. After all…he was a Gifted, a far more advanced Keyblade wielder than I'll ever hope to be. He was just born naturally talented.

Today, he's two rows behind us.

I diverted my attention away.

"**Whoa!" **Axel cried out. "Easy there—easy there! I'm _**delicate!"**_

A blonde-haired boy had rushed his way into the seat of my left, slamming the desktop with his book bag and nearly knocking over the goof. He was panting heavily from the run and plopped into the chair, flat. "Did I beat the teacher?" he asked between breaths.

There was a loud **SLAM **from the door, so loud and clear that all of the chaos and noise everyone else was making came to a hush. Silence. Immediately, most of the other students scurried to their chairs, sitting down and watching the tall cloaked figure enter the room.

Just his presence along was enough to shut us up.

Axel slid off the blonde's desk and snuck his way past me, taking the seat at my right.

"Ah!" Something smacked the side of my head, which then rolled down onto my desktop. I blinked before seeing that it was a giant paper-ball. It was almost as big as my fist. "What…?"

I turned to look behind me, only to see a crowd of classmates who were dressed similarly to us. Of course, they were snickering to themselves, tossing their heads back—with the crazy hair-dos and colors.

"We're outcasts." Axel chimed into my thoughts, and I averted my attention to Axel… "That's what we are to those thugs."

_Way to kill what I wanted to believe, idiot… _I glowered.

In this world, it's either you make it or break it. Strong or weak. Smart or dumb. In or…out.

"Attention, Class D!" Teacher stood in front of us, with his head tall. He always had his hood up over his fact—masking his identity from us…and the world. "Today, we'll be having a new classmate joining us today. I want you all to be respectful to her. Make her feel welcome."

The door nearly creaked.

Silence.

"You may now come in, Namine." Teacher called out.

"Teacher, are you sure it's a person—and **NOT **the wind?" One of the thugs laughed out. He was then followed by his hyena crowd of friends.

_Those blue eyes… _

I stared at the door, feeling its familiar presence…

A small face peeked out from behind it, with bright ocean-blue eyes and long, shoulder-length blonde hair.

"Um…I…I'm not wearing the uniform, so should I come in anyway?" she asked, meekly.

_OH…MY GOSH… _I was mind-blown, shocked at the irony I was being presented. _She's not __**cool—**__she's __**CUTE!**_

"Did she just scream 'Moe'?" a voice chimed in.

I turned to my right. Glaring.

"Lay off, Axel—you dirty pervert." I said, darkly.

"Axel, you pedo…" the blonde joined in.

"Aw, come **ON, ROXAS!" **Axel laughed. "She's cute—innocent—oblivious! The **perfect **target for us men!"

"Lay off, _**Axel!" **_I hissed, raising my voice.

Inside, I was silently screaming for him to not bring unwanted attention—not to mention, embarrassment—to our trio—especially in front of Riku—

**"I SAID SHE SCREAMED MOE!"**

My face went completely red, and I slowly touched my ears in crimson embarrassment.

Yeah…the class and Teacher were staring at us. At Axel. And me.

Silence.

"I said she screamed, Moe." the idiot repeated himself.

**WITH **a straight face.

The new girl quietly came into the classroom, having just closed the door behind her. She was carrying a large sketchbook, and it was just like she had said—she wasn't wearing the typical trench-coat uniform. Instead, she was wearing a short white dress with light-blue sandals.

Her wide eyes trailed over to our trio… "What's Moe?"

Riku laughed.

**God.**


	3. 02::Roxas:: Blue Eyes

**::02:: Roxas::Blue Eyes::**

"So…where did you come from?" I asked her.

The new girl who had recently joined our class turned around, her desk being just in front of mine. There was just something about her that caught my attention…and it just wasn't her bright ocean-blue eyes, her soft blonde hair, the innocent way she'd look at people… There was something more than just all of that.

I reddened.

"The sky." She answered, tucking the pencil on her ear.

"What…?" That…was **unexpected. **"What do you mean?"

_Her blue eyes… _I watched her go back into doodling. _Where have I seen them before…?_

The school bell rang, and while my hand was within reach, I hesitated. I pulled away, scratching the crown of my hair, awkwardly.

She got up, picking up her book.

"I should get going." The girl said, shyly. "See you later."

And just like that, she walked away.

* * *

With the red sun just setting in the horizon, I continued to watch it sink behind the shining ocean from afar. Standing on the stone ledge, I was holding a book bag over my shoulder, feeling the sea breeze blow past me.

"What are you doing, standing like that?"

"It shouldn't concern you, Riku." I said.

"Just looking out for the brother of my good classmate." He paused, standing from below. "Or should I say, younger _**twin **_brother?"

I growled beneath my breath, and he coolly hopped onto the stone wall. "What do you want?"

"I'd say that you should've been one of us, Roxas."

"Just cut it out, already." I murmured, grudgingly.

"Keep acting like that, and the Darkness will be out to get you." He taunted lightly. "You should really get those Keyblade skills workin' if you're that resentful of Ventus and the Gifted."

"Why, you—"

Before I could say anything else, the older boy was already behind me, with hands in his pockets.

"…I know what you saw in Her." He whispered darkly into my right ear. "…Because I saw it too.

_**!**_ Jolting at this, I almost flung my bag around, but he gently dodged the blow and leapt off the wall.

"Roxas!" I heard Axel from within a short distance, followed by Xion, who too yelled out my name.

"We should talk in another time." Riku smirked, and while I could've said something, he fell back into a portal…disappearing altogether.

"Damn, the guy got away!" Axel muttered. He got to the spot right after Riku left. "Must've gone back to the Destiny dormitory…"

"Look at who I brought along!" Xion exclaimed.

A girl moved from behind Xion's figure, tucking a hair behind her ear. Her large eyes met with mine as she held onto her book tightly.

It was the new girl.

Recovering from what's just happened with Riku, I managed a smile. Just to lighten things up.

"Hey, what's your name?" I asked, curiously. I quickly hopped off the stone ledge and into the grass where everyone else was standing about. "I wasn't paying much attention to the Teacher when he was introducing you." Scratching the back of my spiky hair, I chuckled nervously.

" I'm Namine." She replied, looking down.

"Oh…" I stared, studying how the setting sun was shining against her hair and white dress. "That's a pretty name!"

My heart nearly stopped from beating so hard, so hard I thought I couldn't breathe.

"Say…Namine, where are you staying at?" asked Xion.

"I live at just the corner of the Academy." The girl smiled. "Area's not too bad."

"Shall we check your place out, then?" Axel chimed in. "Roxas, do you want to tag along or go back to the Twilight dorm?" He too was trying to brush off my situation.

"Sure…" I swallowed. "I'll come."

_Where did you come from? _

Namine tilted her head to the side, smiling.

…_from a Dream?_


	4. 03::Xion:: A Coming Dusk

**::03:: Xion:: A Coming Dusk::**

"What is this?" I asked.

Standing before us, stood a dingy, old wooden house with taped up windows. The door was hardly standing at all, with its crushed-up steps and weedy yard. The red rooftop was taken up by the greedy vines, ready to eat it all up.

"My house." said Namine. She turned to us and flashed another bright smile. "Do you want to come inside?"

Let me rewind that…

_**YOU WANT US TO COME INSIDE?! **_I was screaming at the top of my lungs…inside my head when following the little girl into her tiny, tiny house.

"How long have you been living here?" asked Axel, coolly.

_**That's what I'd like to know! **_With eyes wide, I was ready to take in any sort of explanation of how could someone like Namine would agree to live in such an environment!

"I've been living here for as long as I remember." She answered, with her back to us. "Oh, here's the light switch." It made my skin jump when Namine turned on the lights, only to see that the tiny light-bulbs were nearly giving out as well. "Oops… I guess I'll need to go look for more bulbs tonight."

_** "Look?" **_Axel echoed. "What do you mean?"

"Like I said, I've been living like this for as long as I can remember."

"Namine…" Roxas stopped in front of me, touching the fragile wall of the house. "Maybe you should come with us… I don't like where you're living."

"…Yeah, same here." I said. "You can come join us in the Academy's Twilight dormitory. It's a lot safer than here—"

"What are these?" Hearing Axel's sharp tone, Roxas and I ran over to where he standing at. "What…?"

The red-head was peering into the stack of yellowed papers nailed into the kitchen wall, flipping through them crazily. "Are th-these _**bills?! House rental bills **_that you haven't paid up yet at this point of time?"

"Yes." Namine answered, sweeping the dusty floor with a tiny broomstick. "I may be a few months behind, but Landlord had been so kind to let me stay here, regardless."

I gritted my teeth, distraught with the living conditions she was confining herself to.

"Na—" I was stopped by Roxas, who shook his head in my direction. "But…"

"Namine, where is this Landlord?" Axel asked.

"Why, he lives next door."

"Let's pay him a visit, shall we—" the red-head paused. "When's the last time you visited the guy?"

"A few months ago." Namine had tucked the broomstick by the dirty refridgerator. "I haven't seen him since. After all, he went on a trip and never came back to check on me."

I stiffen at the slight possibility and turned to Roxas, grimly.

"…We should go check it out, just in case." said the blonde. "This isn't a healthy place for you to live anymore. It's not even within the legal sanitization standards, Radiant Garden-wise…"

* * *

Even the Landlord's house, which stood a few feet away from Namine's…didn't seem so much cleaner or better. The wooden roof was falling apart, engulfed by thorns and thistles; windows were broken and boarded up with wood; the faintly red-painted door was standing up tight with loose screws lying about the steps. When standing on the front porch, I could feel the boards creaking beneath my weight and slowly rotting away.

"Xion, you and Namine stand outside while I go check this place out." Axel said to me.

"Hey, what about me?" Roxas whined.

"Well, if your name isn't included with mine—then, you should know where you stand."

**"What?" **pouted the blonde. "I want to come along too!"

"Roxas, just stay out here with the girls." Axel rolled his eyes. "It won't be long."

* * *

**3 seconds later…**

It wasn't even a minute when I heard the feet running out of the door, and before I could act, Axel had already slammed it shut, with a pale face.

"Place is cleared…" he paused, looking over at the clueless Namine. "…I wouldn't recommend you coming inside this house."

"What happened?" Roxas asked. "Did you…?" he stopped when Axel shook his head. "…Are you saying…?"

"We're taking the girl back to our dorm." The red-head ordered, with head bowing low. "Namine, you should pack up your bags. Your debts had already been taken care of…"

I stared into the broken windows. "I see…"

* * *

"…So, the guy was dead." I said. "In the house."

"Yeah, just as I feared." Axel sighed.

Axel, Roxas, and I had been sitting around the living room while Namine unpacked her luggage in my bedroom. It had been decided…that obviously, she would be sharing the room with me. With, of course, Roxas' _**precious**_ bed.

Yeah…he and Axel will be sleeping together on the same mattress…alone.

...

**SOON.**


	5. 04::Namine::Paper Mirror

**::04:: Namine::Paper Mirror::**

_Why did I agree to come?_

Just the thought was enough to send me mad as I sat on the unfamiliar mattress.

I looked across the bed: its white bed-covers, cold blanket, and pillow, and just at the head, there stood a lean, tall bookshelf harboring gadgets and trinkets of its own. A soft sigh slipped through my lips as I carefully laid on my back, my eyes traveling up to the white ceiling.

_"I must dispose you."_

_ In between my drowsy eyes, I tried to make a sound—any sound, a scream, anything that could simply tell that stranger, "No!" I didn't want to be "disposed." I didn't want to be all alone. I didn't want to wake up alone. _

I didn't remember much, but everything I touched during those last darkest hours was cold ice. Everything was sharp. The ground I slept on and woke up on was rough, chilly, and…dirty. When I had finally woken up, I found myself on the front porch of the dingy, withering house. I was scared, because I was alone…in the darkest, longest night I had ever endured.

"Namine?"

Her voice nearly startled me, and I turned to my side, meeting her sapphire eyes, which burned with a heart-felt concern.

"What's that?" Xion asked. She hesitantly touched my right thigh, where my white dress had flipped up. "Is that…a tattoo?"

I stared at her, unmoving.

"…Namine, what is it?"

"It's…a birthmark." I answered.

"Strange…" the black-haired girl murmured. "It…actually looks like a **heart."** She smiled to herself and patted the crown of my head, messing up my hair along the way. "Everything's okay now. You'll never have to worry about being alone ever aga-"

**"MOE!"**

Xion glowered at the loud, obnoxious voice we all knew too well.

Did I mention that the door seemed to be open?

"Lay off, Axel!" she growled.

"Xion, Roxas is **RAPING MEEEEEE!"**

A frustrated _**huff. **_"Well, maybe it's because you're trying to steal his **KEYBLADE AGAIN!"**

** "But IT LOOKS BETTER THAN MINE!"**

"Excuse me, Namine…" With a plastered failing smile, she looked at me for one last time. "I have to take care of the guys; that way…we can both sleep soundly tonight without any _**unnecessary**_ rackets."

"Eh?" I blinked my eyes.

Before I could embrace myself for another surprise, Xion _**demonically **_ripped a strange metal object—the shape of…a key—out from under the bed itself. I rolled over, dodging her swing as she drove the weapon into air, with brute strength. My eyes widened, my mind at the mercy of its powerful presence—the awe and intimidation and beauty of…this **Keyblade!**

"Axel, you're looking for some butt-shoving discipline!" she screamed, dashing out the door.

I sat.

Suddenly, a bright light bolted the door wide open and nearly blinded me. I shielded my eyes, catching small glimpses of Xion and Axel locked…in combat?

Roxas, on the other hand, was standing by Xion herself…

"Hand over Roxas' keyblade, right now!" she demanded, holding the weapon before herself. Narrowing her blue eyes at the red-head, the small girl took another battle stance, ready to fly at the guy with everything she's got. In a way…it seemed like Xion was "playing" but at the same time, she wasn't. A smirk made its way into her lips. "Or…give me your **future window seat."**

"Well, this is getting annoying." Axel grinned, waving his newfound toy around. He nearly dropped it. "Why so serious now, Xion? You're not going to cut me for real, right?"

"Why, you—" She quickly sprinted head-on with the older boy, willing for her keyblade to knock the weapon from his hands—"You're so stubborn—"

**"What's the meaning of this?"**

I jolted at the sudden sharp, deep voice.

Swiping his keyblade from Axel's grip, Roxas made his way across the tarnished living room. His face was clouding over with uncontrollable anger, his once-soft eyes hardening into frigid ice, and the smile wiped off from his lips, replaced by a severe frown.

Inevitably, there was tension in the entire dorm, and I didn't know what was going on.

"Roxas." Another voice, a softer and less deeper one, marked its presence.

A stranger, who had witnessed what was about to happen between Axel and Xion, was standing by the opened dormitory door. Behind him were two older teenagers, a blue-haired girl and a brown-haired boy. Although the two were not dressed in the familiar trench-coat uniform like Xion's, they were wearing an invisible badge of awe... The stranger's eyes softened, his hands pulling to his black hood.

He pulled it down, and the stranger…came to look **exactly **like Roxas.

**"Ventus." ** Roxas retorted, resting his weapon against his right shoulder.


	6. 05::Namine::Paper Princess

**::05:: Namine::Paper Princess::**

"This is an extreme violation of the Keyblade wielding codes." Spoke the blue-haired girl. "Xion and Axel, you two had a full understanding of those codes of honor; especially on the Academy grounds, you both had violated not just _**two **_rules but _**three**_ additional minor—"

The older brown-haired young man placed his hand on her lean shoulder, causing the girl to stop. Though hesitating, she quickly spun around in protest. "Terra, you can't possibly let this slide—"

"You Gifted think you could just barge into our dormitory." Sneered Axel. "My, my… I don't think I can possibly let this slide as well. Three snotty so-called Gift-ties think they can just boss us Nobodies around in the night—behind the backs of their mighty Eraqus—"

"Who is this girl?" Terra's deep, irritated voice intruded. "What is she doing here?"

I nearly jolted at the sound of his booming voice, looking over at Roxas who was locking eyes with the other boy. I then turned to Xion, who too was watching me. Swallowing, I took a small but timid step up—past Axel's protection.

"Sh-she's…a classmate." Axel stammered. "Cut us some slack, will you? She needs a home—she can't stay in the Academy corner shacks—" He tried to reach for me. "N-Namine, what are you doing?"

"My name's Namine." I planted myself before Terra, with head high. While trying not to shake from intimidation, I continued, "I lived at the Academy corner shacks. You see…I'm new to the Academy, and I just lost my home, so I came here to live with my new friends."

Terra's stone expression softened a little. He averted his attention to the blue-haired girl and said, "Aqua, we're taking her."

_**!** _I began to panic.

"Terra, Aqua," Ventus spoke, "you two can go ahead. I'll catch up later." With eyes still locked in with Roxas, he added, "We…need to talk."

Without a word, Roxas and Ventus both walked out the door behind the two.

"That takes care of it." said Aqua. She beckoned me to follow, and I hesitantly obeyed. "Come, you need to see the Master."

"W-wait!" Xion began to protest. "You two can't take her!"

Axel glowered. "Damn it… Your Oblivion dormitory is gated up, and you're taking her to see your Overseer?" He tried to approach us, but Terra pulled out his Keyblade in defense—cutting Axel off his tracks. **"What?!"**

"You should be grateful that I'm not reporting this incident to the Headmaster Xemnas." said the older teenager. "In exchange for that to be a secret, I think it'd be wise as well to let us handle your new friend's situation."

A great deed of curiosity took a toll on me. Terra's Keyblade… It had come out of nowhere and appeared with just a flash of light! I stared at Terra intently, then, back at Aqua, who stood in front of me. _Who are they?_ I wondered. _What's the difference between Them and Us?_


	7. 06::Roxas::Reflections

**::06:: Roxas::Reflections::**

"You are no different than I."

"Is that so?" His cool response made my teeth grind. "If that were to be true, then, you should understand why the Oblivion trio happened to be around the area."

"Shut up." Everything about him was making my blood boil.

I hate him. So much.

The two of us were far away from the Academy dormitories, sitting around the Meeting Square's water fountain. Beneath the dark starry night, surrounded by the rose garden, there were just us. Everyone else was where they were supposed to be during the school evenings—sleeping, playing, sparring…

I stood up from the stone ledge and began to walk toward the water fountain.

"Where are you going?" he asked.

I whipped around, with Keyblade in hand.

"Stop that." His blue eyes were soft with concern. "Stop swinging that around. It's not a toy, you know—it's dangerous."

"Ven, why did He choose you?" I fired back.

"Are you still hung up on that, Roxas?" He got up. "How long are you going to keep acting like this?"

Oh, how I hate it when he pinpoints me like that.

I closed my eyes tightly, and the weapon quickly vanished into the air.

"I don't know." Ven replied, softly. "I honestly…thought you were going to be chosen—not me."

I opened my eyes, blazing with acid embitterment.

"I didn't ask to be a Gifted—a hand-picked advanced Keyblade wielder." He paused. "And I didn't ask to be hated by someone like you—my twin brother."

Looking down at my black-and-white jacket, my eyes first went from the red collar tips to the black zipper. I then reflected it against my brother's jacket, black and white with not a black undershirt—but a gray one. He and I had always been each other's mirror. Strong or weak. In…or out.

"Are…you jealous?"

I bit my bottom lip upon hearing that.

"If you are, you need to have that under control, Roxas."

"I have _**everything in control!" **_I lashed out. "And I am **NOT **jealous!"

"…I'm just saying." Ven stopped for a moment, willing to meet my eyes…but I did not. "I'm grateful for being a Gifted, so I have no regrets. It's because of that, I got to meet my best friends—

Terra and Aqua." I returned his solemn gaze. "Friends like those…and yours are hard to come by, don't you think?"

I swallowed.

"Not to mention, that new friend of yours…" For a split second, the corner of his lips tugged into a small quiet smile. "…She's interesting."

"What?" He shook the thought off and began to walk away. "Wait, what did you just say?"

"Never mind me." Looking over his shoulder, Ven raised his voice, "If you want to be a better Keyblade wielder than me, you should get working!"

"H-Hey!" _The idiot thinks he can just walk off like that? _**"Ventus!"**

A dark void opened up at his command, and before I could approach him, Ven disappeared into it. With a smile.

"That jerk…" I glowered. "Ditching me at a time and place like this…"


	8. 07::Xion::White Knight

**::07:: Xion::White Knight::**

"**Ha!" **I hurled the Keyblade again and again, slicing the night air. "Ha!"

Feeling a bit worn down, I stopped to put the weapon down to the cool grass and tugged onto my black tank top. I sank into the nearby stone bench where my water bottle was at and looked up at the Twilight dormitory's balcony from below. A few hundred yards away stood the Destiny dorm, looking as grand and proud as always—basked in the glorious light of Kingdom Hearts.

Sparring at night…had always been a way of cooling off steam for me.

Roxas hasn't come back yet, and I'm now growing a bit concerned.

Always running off without telling me or Axel—and worse, during the critical time when the Oblivion duo were taking away Namine.

_Does he even have the right sense of mind now? _I thought, frustratedly.

"What a way to make that weird face."

The deep, husky voice made me jump, and soon enough, there was Riku—sitting next to me, with that sly smile slapped onto his lips.

"What are you doing here?" I retorted before gulping down the water bottle.

"This dormitory field is for everyone, you know." He casually answered.

"I mean, _**here—**_on the Nobodies ground." I raised an irritated eyebrow at the pretty boy.

"Ever thought about it?"

"Eh?" I blinked.

"During nights like this, sparring and stuffs like that." Riku stopped. "It's when we Gifted and Nobodies can finally hang out and be…just friends, without worrying about each other's statuses on Academy grounds. No one can say anything, and everyone just cares about whether or not you belong to this school and about the wielding the Keyblade."

"Yeah…now I think about it…" Riku was right. I haven't thought about that sort of thing before…at nights like this.

That's the _thing _about Riku—the cool point, I guess. It's one of those traits that caught my attention—why he caught my eye, that is. He's one of those people who just knows what to say and make you feel like there are no boundaries, like everything is possible if you try or believe in it. It makes me feel small and naïve—always been that way when he and I are together…not that…you know…not that it's anything _**special**_.

"One sky, one destiny."

_! _The wind blew against my cheek and billowed against his long white hair. With my face hot, I quietly thank the night for being so dark—that he wouldn't be able to see my red tomato head.

"Do you want to spar with me?" he asked, with a smirk.

* * *

"Is that the best you got?!" Riku laughed, and with such ease, the boy evaded my weapon. "You have the muscle but do you have the speed?"

I was already tired within the five minutes of sparring, but I now know why he's considered one of the best Gifted there are on the Academy grounds. Frustration was taking a toll on me as he continued to taunt me about my lack of skills—but I didn't know what else to do other than slice through air, lunge, and deflect his attacks.

"You did it again!" he chuckled, dancing his way through my hits and ultimately—missing them.

"Stop teasing me!" I muttered.

"I have **every **right to tease you." The older boy winked, and my heart stopped.

With face red, I growled and quickly pivoted my foot around him before hurling the Keyblade on his shoulder. I landed my first blow, and while smiling, I quickly pivoted again and laid a hit on his stomach—with the dull blade edge, of course.

"Ack!" Startled by this sudden change, Riku was stunned. "What the—"

"**Ha!"** I was so sure that my pivot trick would work again—but before I could lay a touch on the shoulder—

"**Sorry."** It happened so fast that I—"I have to take the win." His weapon's dull edge flashed before my throat, ready to end everything right there. At that moment.

"What?" My jaw tightened upon this sudden and ultimate defeat.

My neck was hot as he had his Keyblade up against my throat, his strong arm resting against my warm skin and his other arm around my small stomach—in a firm…position. I was stuck, caught—unable to move, standing there stiff in the midst of night.

"I win." His soft whisper tickled my ear, his lips close to it and my short black hair. "Xion."

He was breathing close to my neck. So intimately close. So close.

"_**Riku!" **_

In the distance, somewhere within the rolling hills of grass, across the dormitories field—another girl was calling out his name.

Riku quickly pulled away, and his weapon disappeared in a blazing flash of light.

"_**Where are you, Riku?"**_ the voice continued to call out his name.

I saw her. The girl in pink, with red hair flying in the night breeze. Standing in front of the Twilight dormitory.

My Keyblade too vanished. I stared…at the girl, with a tinge of envy.

"Is that Kairi calling you?" I asked, hesitantly.

"Yeah." He answered, facing away from me. Riku was looking back at her, and somehow, I just knew…whenever we're together, when she's there…

"Is Kairi important to you?" I couldn't help myself.

"Is Roxas important to you?" To my surprise, he deflected my question and reversed the situation on me. "Is Axel? Is Namine?"

That blade…seemed to have made a dent on my heart.

"If they are…" Riku paused. "Then, you should know where we stand."

Just like that, he headed off.

I watched with longing.

"…and which **We **did you mean?" I whispered.


	9. 08::Namine::Reasons

**::08:: Namine::Reason::**

"Is that right, Aqua?" questioned the deep, wise voice.

I don't know why, but Terra and Aqua made me stand by the door while they talked to the Overseer, the Master Eraqus. His voice spoke of age, wisdom, and strength—wars that were fought and forced—pain and grief—of knowledge that was both innocent and black-listed. I peeked behind the bedroom door of the dorm, catching a glimpse of Aqua's sky-blue skirt and black tights.

"Hmm…" the elder stopped. "I'm afraid we are left with no choice but to conceal her physical existence from the Headmaster Xemnas."

"Wh-why?!" Terra cried out. "Isn't that an indirect calling for—"

"Master Eraqus, what is it about this girl that causes such a rash decision?" Aqua asked. "We don't understand…"

"She's **special, **Aqua." The Master explained. "Namine is different from all the other Academy students. She has a magic that even I do not have, a magic that can attract Darkness and those who reside within it; thus, it can even call for…**Xehanort."**

"How do you know?" the students both asked.

"I can sense it…" he replied. "And for that, my students, I have a special request for you two and Ventus: protect Namine."

"...Xe..ha...nort?" I repeated softly.

Just saying the name was enough to send tremors down through my heart.

* * *

The two didn't say much when they were walking me back to the Twilight dormitory and as we were going through the Field, I managed to spot a boy walking away from Xion. Small figures at a far distance, but I could make out the figures still as the lamp posts were lit against them.

I was going to run to her; however, a hand grabbed onto my shoulder. "Eh?"

"Listen to me, Namine," Aqua spoke, "I don't know what kind of powers you possess, but you'd be best on your guard as well."

I nodded. "Thanks, Aqua." I turned to Terra. "And you too, Terra."

The older boy sighed, hands on his hips. "Be good."

Eventually, they left me standing alone on the hill of grass and when I turned to look for Xion, she was already gone.

* * *

As soon as I came inside the dorm, Xion seemed to be already sleeping, Roxas hadn't come home at all, and Axel was sitting in the couch…like he was waiting for someone. With head bowed low, the solemnity written deep into his eyes, I closed the door behind me quietly.

He looked up. "I see that they let you stay."

"Of course." I smiled. "And I'm glad."

"Miss Namine, I'd like to ask you something."

The tone of his voice frightened me a little as I saw that he was looking at my sketchbook, the one I brought to class this morning. An uneasiness squirmed its way to me.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Who are you?"

I stared into his green eyes. "…I'm Namine."

"I'm asking you this…because I know you are not here for Keyblade smancy-fancy stuffs."

"How?"

"Whatever you draw comes to life, Namine." He said. "I hope you understand that and the consequences of such magic you acquire."

Yes, that is true. All I have to do is draw on anything, and it happens as I willed it and imagined it to be. Everything. Don't ask me how and when I knew about this, but somehow, when I woke up alone…I just knew…there must've been a **reason **why I was right there. In front of the Academy itself.

**"I'm a witch."** I admitted. "Or…that's what Saix told me."

"Saix?" Axel repeated. Dread cut across his stern expression.

"Yes, that blue-haired guy…in class." I said. "He saw me drawing during Break and what happened. Saix told me that."

"**!" **The red-head gritted his teeth. "So…They found you."

"What?"

To my surprise, Axel then laughed darkly to himself. "Oh geez, things just keep getting better and better." He placed the sketchbook onto the wooden table before him. "First, you appeared. Then, you met Saix, and we took you in. All of a sudden, the Oblivion trio happened to be _passing by_, and you had to go see the Master Eraqus. You came back, and now, you're telling me that you are a Witch."

He was scratching his hair like there was no Tomorrow.

"Look, Namine, by now—I know that old man told his Trio to protect you from that Xehanort or...Xemnas guy." The young man's serious expression clouded over with an anxiety mixed with fear. "But I have a better idea: we need to get you out of here."


	10. 09::Roxas::White Witch and her Hero

**::09:: Roxas::White Witch and her Hero::**

"Get me out of here?"

I was making my way up the marble dormitory staircase when I heard voices talking; they seemed to be coming from the dorm itself, and me being curious, I decided to stand by the door and listen. It appeared to me that Namine and Axel were discussing a sticky topic, an urgent one…

It was Namine's voice, and judging from the tone, didn't sound good to me.

"Why?" she asked.

"That Saix guy is bad news." said Axel. "And if you truly understand the present danger you've been placed into, you'd know that your Magic is what They will be coming for."

"People keep saying that." She paused briefly. "But I want to know…why."

"Your Magic is special, Namine. I want you to remember that."

"If bad people are going to come for me, then, that means even Roxas may get hurt."

**! **My heart nearly halted at the sweet sound of her voice mentioning my name.

"…Axel, I want to ask you something." Namine continued. "Who are They?" She stopped, hesitantly. "…and what of your link to Saix?"

"They are—"

"What's going on?" I blurted out. I opened the door, and soon enough, when I stepped into the dormitory, everyone was up. Xion had made her way up the hallway and was listening the entire time too. I averted my attention to Axel, "What's happening to Namine?"

"Axel…" The girl bit her bottom lip. "You know more than I know, so explain."

"Namine's our friend!" Xion crossed her arms. "I'm not going to let her disappear like that."

With a heavy sigh, Axel began mumbling to himself, "…See…this is why…but no, He…" The older boy got up from his seat and shook his head, pulling at his spiky red hair. "Geez, people like making things so complicated…"

I turned to Namine, hoping to ask her about the sudden urgent situation; however, before I knew it, she went over to Axel and picked up the sketchbook from the table. She grabbed a color-pencil as well and began…drawing.

"Wait, Namine," Xion whispered out.

"It's okay, you two." She smiled, showing us her drawing of stars… "Look outside."

The four of us walked out into the marble balcony overlooking the Field, with heads high and eyes trailing onto the bright stars above us.

Twinkling with such innocence, the stars seemed to be moving altogether.

"I'm a Witch." She pointed out.

Within seconds, they were arranged exactly like the picture shown.

They were in the shape of…

Me.

* * *

The second day since Her arrival.

_**WHEET!**_

I cringed at the piercing sound of Zack's whistle, sweating when the class and I were walking out into the grassy fields. The man blew his instrument once more as I wiped the hot sweat from my forehead, glaring at the vicious sun. I looked over my shoulder where Xion and Namine were keeping to themselves, talking to one another.

We were all dressed out in our white gym t-shirts and black shorts, suffering from the afternoon evils.

_**WHEET!**_

"C'mon, everyone!" Zack jogged up to me and Axel, hyped up as usual with his optimistic personality. "Run a little! You all aren't going to make it to the Academy swimming pool very soon if you guys keep this up!"

"Man, can't you stop whistling that thing?" Axel complained.

"No can do, dude!" The black-haired man stopped to do his usual squats, and in a zip, he was up again and running around us two. "C'mon! Be a bit chatty! Smile!" He turned around. "Cloud, run! You're not my teacher assistant for nothing, buddy!"

"Why is the swimming pool a good ten acres away from the Academy itself again?" I glowered.

As soon I blurted that one out, I felt a _thump _against my leg and looked over to my left.

Cloud lifted up his sheathed sword, poker-faced as usual. "So, that you bums can get your lazy butts off the couch and start exercising."

I could see the sweat dripping down his blonde spiky hair…

"That's right!" Zack laughed. "Awesome Keyblade wielders always need to be in good shape for swift battles—" His laughter was cut shortly, only to be replaced by a solemn line in lips.

Axel and I stopped in our tracks, the same with our classmates.

In the pool, there were already students in there—the Gifted.

I gritted my teeth as Ventus and his friends stared back at us.

"What's going on?" Zack murmured. "This wasn't supposed to happen." One of the figures swimming in the enormous pool caught his eye. **"Hey, Leon!"**

Leon, a man with brown hair, emerged from the waters and began approaching our group in swimming trunks. "Yes, Zack?" he addressed.

"What's going on?"

"The Gifted were hot, so we decided to take a dip." Leon answered, casually.

Zack's eyes clouded over in anger. "What?"

Once again, my blue eyes met against Ven's blinking irises.

The Gifted... I thought to myself, grudgingly.

When I had registered for the Academy with Ven, we had to take magic entrance exams in which we were both tested on the power levels and control of our magic. I had always struggled against Ven, and even when growing up, he was perfect at everything. When we found out that we had to fight one another in front of the Headmaster and several instructors, we muster up all we had. I lost within the first few minutes and was casted aside for the "Nobody" category while Ventus got to move forward into the "Gifted" class.

To be branded a "Gifted", it means you have what it takes to be a Hero.

You have what it takes...to be a top-notch Keyblade wielder, a knight-a Keyblade master.

"Hey!" I turned to my left, following Axel's voice. "There's a pool here too, you guys!"

"W-wait!" Even poker-faced Cloud seemed surprised. "There wasn't…supposed to be another pool—only one!"

"Isn't this great?" I nearly jumped, startled by Namine who stood by my side. "Now, everyone can go swimming." My eyes trailed over to the sketchbook in her arms. "I had a hunch something like this would happen."

Soon enough, everyone from the Nobodies class were jumping into the gigantic blue pool that sat next to the Gift-ties'. The guys were stripping down to their swimming trunks while the girls were in their uniform one-piece swimsuits. The sun was getting to me, and I was going to jump in the cold water—when my heart stopped.

I turned to Namine, who was looking over the pool's ledge—halfway stripping down to her white one-piece. My ears felt hot, and I sucked in a deep breath. From the corner of my eye, Axel was snickering from the look of my face.

The White Witch.

Namine, in her one-piece, turned to me with a bright smile.

"_Where did you come from?" I had asked._

_Her blue-ocean eyes stared back at me, wide and filled with innocence. "…the sky."_

An angel…if you will.

And I wanted to be her Hero.


	11. 10::Roxas::Shadow Boy

**::10:: Roxas::Shadow Boy::**

"_What are you waiting for?" asked the mysterious voice. _

_Standing in the bright spotlight, I hesitantly picked up the Keyblade that laid before me._

"_Roxas!" I whipped around with the weapon in hand, and there She was. "No! Don't wield it!"_

"_N-Namine!" A black hand covered her mouth from behind, and when I peered closer, a tall dark figure towered over her tiny frame. "Let her go!"_

"_What are you waiting for?"the stranger beckoned. I stared, shocked—realizing that He was the owner of the voice. "Do it."_

"_Mmf! No, Roxas!"_

"_**What are you waiting for?"**_

Immediately, in the dead of night, I was up in the bed—sweating with horror. I wiped my face and eventually, covered it with my trembling hands. My abrupt sit-up must've startled Axel as he too sat up, quietly.

"Another dream, Roxas?" he asked me.

"Mm…just a bad one." I answered, with a sigh. "It's been coming back more often these days."

"What was it about?"

"…Darkness…a boy…" I paused, shaking my head. "Never mind. It's probably just a silly dream."

"You know…dreams like that mean something if they bother you that much." He then scrunched up my blonde hair with his large hand, chuckling. "C'mon, let's spar a little since we both can't sleep."

"Sounds like a great idea."

"Let's go, buddy."

* * *

It wasn't even five minutes into the sparring when I felt as though Axel was pushing my limits—and I don't know if it was just me, I too thought that our Keyblades must've at least woke up someone at this time of night.

"C'mon, Roxas!" Axel chuckled. "Put in a bit more effort, will you? Take me seriously!"

"Ack!" Our Keyblades clashed once more, sparking jolts of electricity. "Maybe this is…a bad idea, after all…"

"Not at all!" He suddenly spun around with lightning speed, whipping up a tornado. "Hit me now!" I blinked, and one moment, he was in front of me—the next, he was right by my side. "C'mon, focus!"

I pulled out the Keyblade—just in time to block his hit. **"!"**

"Again!"

I was given no choice but to deflect the next blow, and just in case, I pulled away the Keyblade—

Fire balls came hurling into my direction, and I quickly pivoted my foot, lunging into the air for Axel. He quickly blocked when all of a sudden—

"**What?!" **Axel's green eyes widened. Another Keyblade appeared in my left hand, and I used it to land a hit on his ribs. The older boy flew back a few yards, rolling in the lush, cool grass. **"!"**

"Axel!" I cried out in alarm. "I—"

"G-good one, kid…" The red-head sighed, face in the grass. He slowly sat up, one hand against his left ribcage. "I don't know where that other Keyblade came from…but that means something, all right…" He stopped, tracing my facial expression. "You're surprised that you can pull that stunt off? You're a kid full of potential—stuffs that those stupid Gift-ties would never have. Got that memorized?"

"…Axel…" I stared down at the two weapons I now wield. "…You knew, didn't you?"

"I don't always know about everything… Have a little faith in yourself, will ya?" The older boy was brushing off the dirt and grass. "Maybe…_**you **_knew all along—just didn't give yourself a fair chance because of the Label."

After calling off the pair of Keyblades, I made my way into helping Axel up. He smiled and ruffled the crown of my spiky hair in the same old messy fashion. I laughed.

…Maybe Axel was right. I just didn't have faith in myself.

* * *

**WHEET!**

Got to love Zack's whistle.

"Today, we are going to be engaged in the usual basic combat practices—in preparations for future Keyblade battles!" announced the gym teacher. The man and Cloud were pacing back and forth, up and down the line we all made. "Finals are coming in, and you guys need to ace those baby skills of yours—and show those Gift-ties what you've got!"

"You there…" Cloud's voice startled me as I was in the morning daze. "You, Roxas…" He beckoned me to get out of line while Zack continued to march about. I was confused about why I was called out until…he pointed to another boy, dressed in an all-black gym outfit with the hoodie up. "You two are going to be today's sparring examples." His blue eyes never wavered from me, hinting a cautious glare. "Be ready."

The guy and I were dragged out into the front, standing by Zack. I tried to smile, ignoring the kicks of anxiety and nervousness—while the guy just stood there, with his hood up and nothing to show or say.

"Ready?" Cloud asked us two.

I gulped, noting the circle of classmates (including Axel, Xion, and Namine) around us.

"**Spar!" **Zack shouted out.

Almost instantly, both of us had our Keyblades out. I was nervous, sweating, and trying to keep a tight grip on the weapon's handle. What bothered me was that the guy wasn't moving at all, hand down with the Keyblade.

"Hey, you," I started, "they want us to fight now."

I wasn't sure if he could hear me or if he even could see that we were supposed to fight as a demonstration.

"…What are you waiting for?" was his response.

I jolted. "What?"


	12. 11::Roxas::Identity

**::11:: Roxas:Identity::**

"What are you waiting for?" To my disbelief, the voice matched the exact one—the voice that haunted my dreams for countless nights. My opponent chuckled, noting my realization. "Get this battle on, already." He finally pulled down the hood. _**"Brother."**_

I stared at him. _Who is this guy? _I thought. _He seems so familiar… _

The older boy had black spiky hair and ruby eyes; seeing my puzzled expression, he chuckled once more. "Oh, geez, c'mon…"

**WHEET!**

Gosh, Zack, you're so… I rolled my eyes and began to lunge for the guy—

"Oops." I flinched, hearing him from behind. "Guess I'm just too quick, right?"

I swung the Keyblade around. "What the—"

"Where's the speed in this battle?"

I growled and spun again when he reappeared by my side. He dodged, and before he could pull away, I hurled my weapon again—landing an echoing hit on his right shoulder. Once my opponent leaned forward, I quickly swung once more, digging the Keyblade into his stomach—with the side edge.

"That hurts…" he laughed.

_This guy…is…_ I swallowed and tried to hit him for the fifth—

"Too slow!" In a blur of motion, the older boy lunged up with his weapon, slicing the blunt side across my chest and knocking me to the ground.

"Oof!" My head had slammed into the grass with a thud, and in the distance, Axel and Xion were calling out my name. Though the screaming pain was kicking in, I wasn't going to give up when it wasn't even three minutes into the sparring yet.

Or can you even _**call **_this "sparring" anymore?

…Like…this is all too real… I grinded my teeth altogether and slowly sat up, fighting my dizzy spell.

"**Roxas, watch out!" **

Namine's voice was enough to snap my head up, only to meet a Keyblade flying into my direction. I quickly deflected it, and when I got back to my feet, the boy was already hurling the weapon again. I blocked it, and just when he was going to bash my left shoulder—

"**Another Keyblade?!" ** Zack cried out.

I struggled, blocking once more and landing a blow on the guy's leg, with the other Keyblade. He tried to swing again; however, because his leg was lagging on him, he slowed, and I quickly pushed him into an utter halt.

Silence.

He was down on the ground.

I was on top, one Keyblade into the ground and the other above his throat.

For a moment, no one moved, and there wasn't a sound except for our heavy breathings.

"**Who are you?"** I whispered, venomously.

"Ooh, you're the scary one, all right." The older boy chuckled. "I expected as much." He slowly moved his head sideways, just enough to see my friends. "That…blonde one…"

"**!" **I felt the shivers crawling in my skin.

"Is that the one…?" the boy stopped, smiling to himself.

**WHEET!**

At the whistle's blow, all of our Keyblades flashed away, and I got up, dusting the dirt off. Never did my eyes waver from His.

"The name's Vanitas." He sneered, pulling out his hand. "Yours?"

"…Roxas." I shook his hand firmly.

He didn't budge, willing to lock our hands tightly. "See you around, then, **Roxas."** Only when he utter those dark words did Vanitas freed my hand and walked away.

I moved my fingers about.

When he looked at Namine like that...it didn't just irritated me, there was this creepy, sinister kind of smile that came out of nowhere...like she was some kind of treasure, a prize or some sort.

"You there," My head shot up at Cloud's voice. I swallowed as he beckoned me to follow him and a grim Zack. "C'mon, we need to talk."

I obeyed, and soon enough, the three of us were standing at the far corner of the training grounds, basked in tree shades. I managed to look back at the stares of my other classmates—some were afraid of me…while others were confused and a bit angry. Axel, Xion, and Namine were, though, standing by those bunches, waiting for my return.

"What was that?" Zack asked me. He raised his critical eyebrow. "How did you summon that second Keyblade?"

"I-I don't know…" I stammered.

"You mean you summoned it without even trying or having any control over it?" Cloud chimed in. "Do you have the slightest idea of what this means to us?"

"I was just sparring with Axel this morning—"

"So, it just came on its own?" Cloud…didn't know when to shut up, and it was beginning to irritate me. I gritted my teeth. "That's it?"

"Cloud, cut him some slack." Zack sighed, scratching his black hair. "Maybe…this is just it." He paused. "You have a gift there, Roxas. What are you doing…in this class?"

My heart dropped.

"…Wh-what are you saying?" I croaked out.

"What I mean…is…" Zack paused. "What are you doing here in this class? The Nobodies?"

That night, I couldn't sleep.

Of course, who could…when Zack himself asked me that kind of question?

In the end, I was more confused than ever before.

Like...am I a Nobody...or a fallen Gifted?


	13. 12::Roxas::Answers

**::12:: Roxas::Answers::**

"_Ven, why did He choose you?" I fired back._

"_Are you still hung up on that, Roxas?" He got up. "How long are you going to keep acting like this?"_

As the cool night breeze swept past me, I closed my eyes firmly.

"_I don't know." Ven replied, softly. "I honestly…thought you were going to be chosen—not me."_

**BAM!**

I had slammed my first down against the balcony ledge and opened my eyes.

"You're crying, Roxas."

I stiffened, and sure enough, Namine was there—standing outside with me. I looked over my shoulder, nearly blinded by the golden light coming from the dormitory itself. Xion and Axel are outside, sparring with one another. With reluctance, I averted my attention back to her.

"Another tear." She pointed out.

Of course, I had been so deeply in thought that I didn't even feel the wet tears slipping down my cheeks. I hastily wiped them away, with embarrassment.

"…Roxas, if there's anything bothering you, you can tell me." Namine said, softly.

"…nothing makes sense anymore." I stopped. "To me, that is."

"What doesn't make sense?"

"…I used to think that _**I **_was supposed to be with Gifted. But instead, Ventus was only chosen—and I was left in the dust. I came here and met Axel and Xion. They became my best friends, and then, we met you. All of a sudden, I could wield a second Keyblade—something that even the Gifted can't do. Now, Zack and Cloud are telling me—that I don't belong here with the Nobodies, that I was supposed to be with the Gifted." I bit my bottom lip. "How could I belong somewhere…where I wasn't even wanted?"

"…Well, where do you think you belong?"

"I don't know… I just don't know who I am anymore."

"Roxas," Namine's shoulder slowly brushed against my right arm, "why are you attending the Academy?"

"I want to be a Keyblade Master, a knight who can protect others."

"And…do you think only Gift-ties can become Keyblade Masters?"

"…No." I answered.

"It's your choice, Roxas." She continued. "Just do whatever your heart tells you to do. If being here makes your heart feel right, then, this is where you belong. If your heart is still restless, then,

maybe…this isn't the place for you to be, after all."

_ Somehow…at that moment, just being with you eases __**my**__ heart._

From the corner of my eye, I could see that she was looking up at Kingdom Hearts—smiling to herself. All she had to do was stand, and she was already glowing.

"Namine," I stammered.

"Yeah?" When she turned to me, I could've sworn that she was radiating white like an angel. "What is it?"

"…Where did you come from?" I asked.

"…When I was sleeping, I always felt like I was dropping from a far, far distance…a place where there was nothing but wind and darkness. I woke up, and all I knew was my name and that I needed to attend the Academy. But unlike the others, I didn't come here to wield a Keyblade; I came here for answers."

_"So…where did you come from?" I asked her._

"_The sky." She answered, tucking the pencil on her ear. _

"Answers?" I repeated. "…Do you think you belong here?"

"…Sometimes, I don't…but right now, I do."

"Why is that?"

She shrugged. "Things happen, and feelings grow. With those two combined, a spark comes from the heart; hence, an answer is born." Namine stopped. "In this case, I finally decided that, yes, this is where I belong."

"…Somehow…I think I get it—where you're coming from, the answers." I nodded. It made sense to me now—everything. "Thanks, Namine."

"No, it's thanks to you, Roxas." She smiled lop-sided. "I had always wanted to tell you those things."

Her voice only made my heart faster and harder than ever before. "Well, if you ever want to talk, we can do this again and again. Every night—even." I said.

"That'll be awesome!"

My cheeks became hot. "Y-yeah…"

* * *

_But little did we know...that would be the last time we'd stand under the night sky like that ever again._


	14. 13::Xion::Fighting Arrows

**::13:: Xion::Fighting Arrows::**

"What are you looking at?" Axel broke into my thoughts.

After an hour of sparring with Keyblades, we decided to call the night off and sat down on stone bench. I had been watching the gold lights from the Destiny dorm for a while, engrossed with my conflicting feelings. I guess I couldn't always hide everything from Axel, after all.

"Nothing." I lied.

The red-head's eyes trailed over toward the Destiny dormitory, which stood at the far distance, and back at my bowing head. He shook his head and sighed. "Saying 'nothing' means 'something.'" Axel continued. "If you have a problem, you should just tell me. Roxas is already closing himself up to me—I don't need for you to do the same." He smiled. "Just remember that."

I sighed. "I know Roxas has his own problems, and I have my own too. I know you have problems also, Axel."

The older boy blinked with confusion. "And?"

"…What should a girl do when a guy likes another girl?" I blurted it out from frustration. "He can't forget about other girl, and yet, the girl can't forget him."

"Oh…" Axel's eyes softened, and he smiled. "Love." He paused. "A love triangle with unrequited feelings pointing everywhere…like fighting arrows." Seeing that I wasn't any happier than before, the red-head stopped again. "Do you like this guy?"

"…Like?"

"Oh, geez…" Axel sighed heavily. "Well…did you tell him about…your…you know…feelings?"

I shook my head.

"Then, you should."

"But…what if he laughs at me?" I asked.

"He won't." the older boy chuckled. "Because you won't let him do that."

"What?!" The eyeballs of my sockets widened. "What do you mean?"

"Look, just tell the guy and show him how much he means to you." Axel continued, shrugging. "After that, he'll **have **to give a damn about you, and if he doesn't, slap him in the face with a Keyblade."

"…That's a violation of the Keyblade wielding codes of honor."

"…That's not what we're talking about right now, Xion."

I sighed. Axel's right…and to be honest, I had clue about how I really felt toward Riku himself. He's important to me, but thinking over it—it's different from the significance Roxas and Axel hold to me. He actually makes me feel good about myself, makes the World seem a lot smaller than it really is… Riku says all the right things I had always needed to hear, not the things I _**want**_ to hear—but stuffs that really helped me understand the World better.

I got onto my feet. "I'm going to pay Him a visit then."

"Go ahead." Axel shrugged.

"Thanks, Axel." I flashed a smile back at the red-head, and with that settled, I instantly broke out into a clean sprint.

_When She appears, it hurts me—my heart—and all of a sudden, it makes me afraid of losing Riku to her. _I slowed when going over the grassy hill. _It makes me realize…that Riku means a lot more to me than I had thought. When Namine appears, I know Roxas will be all right. Nothing hurts. But this…_

"This is different." I whispered beneath my breath.

* * *

I was now standing in front of the grand Destiny dorm which glowed proudly upon me.

To my surprise, Riku was sitting down in the front lawn—stargazing, it seemed. By his side, a brown-haired boy sat—puzzled by my sudden turn-up. His bright sapphire eyes trailed over to me from the satin sky, and he quickly turned to Riku.

"I think she's here for you." He grinned. "I'll go inside and—"

One of the towering double doors opened, and to my dismay, a lean teenage girl emerged from the dormitory. She was wearing a pink one-piece outfit—with a sleeveless hoodie and mid-thigh skirt, zipped from the bottom tip to the breasts. With her red hair flying back, Kairi slowly came down the stairs and joined us three.

"Hi there!" she exclaimed, waving at me.

My heart sank down—rock bottom.

"Hi…" My voice faded into an awkward silence.

"Who's your friend, Riku?" the brown-haired boy asked.

"Xion." Riku replied, coolly. "Kairi, this is Xion. Sora, Xion." When he was motioning his hand from and to us individually, my eyes never wavered from Kairi at all.

_Is it just me…or does she seem…so familiar to me?_ I quietly examined her blue eyes. _I feel…so close to her—like there's a connection or something…_

"Hey!" Sora, being the hyperactive one, suddenly flew up close to my face curiously. "You…look familiar! Have we met before, Xion?"

"N-no!" I shook my head and backed away. "Not that I remember."

"Maybe we did." Kairi chimed in, cheerily. Her sapphire eyes softened upon me—kicking the guilty gear inside my chest. "In a crowd—the streets—something like that, most likely."

"You know what?" Sora said to me. "You and Kairi sure look alike."

"**What?!" **Kairi's eyes nearly bulged out in bewilderment. "No way!"

The two of us turned to each other, speechless.

_He's right…_ My throat was cut dry, stunned by the sudden epiphany. _Her blue eyes—the hair…_

"The blue eyes!" Sora pointed out. "The hair! Even the way you two smile!"

**! **I swallowed. Hard.

"Sora," It was Riku speaking this time—with solemnity. "You're scaring her."

"No, he's not." Instantly, a fake plastered smile spread into my lips. "I was just about to go, anyway, Riku."

"W-wait, I thought you were here to see Riku!" Kairi protested. "Please, don't go yet…"

"Something came up." I lied, with a light laugh. "I completely forgot about a sparring I was supposed to have."

"Ah, then, in that case…" Sora then began to wave his hand in the air. "…good luck then! Be safe, Xion!"

Riku bit his bottom lip—his green eyes never wavering from my retreating back. "Xion—"

"**Good night, Riku." **I stammered with force.

I had my back facing Riku and the others, trying to hide the embarrassment and hurt that were swelling up to the surface.

Silence.

"You were wrong, and for a moment, you had me there. Gift-ties and Nobodies?" A hot tear gently rolled from the corner of my eye down to the cheek. "Being friends—no care for statuses or anything of that matter at night? One World, one sky, and one destiny?" I laughed. "Then, look at the place you're staying at—and mine! Even in Darkness, yours will always glow more radiantly than ours!"

And I ran. From behind, I heard him calling out my name—along with Sora and Kairi.

_I was such a fool._

_I actually thought you liked me for me._

_Not because I looked like Her._

_Not because I reminded you of Her._

_Now, I really know…where We stand._


	15. 14::Riku::Crystals

**::14:: Riku::Crystals::**

"Riku…" My jaw tightened as Sora slowly approached me. "She looks so sad. Is there something you're not telling me and Kairi?"

I looked up against the bright light being emitted by the surrounding lamp posts—our cold white dormitory building and those from across the Field—before finally setting my eyes back at Sora and Kairi. A _huff. _It took me a while to figure out that maybe…half the stuffs Xion just fired at me were true—and that half of the truth revealed tonight…really did make me the jerk of a situation.

"Xion's a Nobody." I answered.

"Really?" Kairi piped in. "But…how are you and her friends, then?"

"We're not friends." I added in my defense.

"**What?!"** Sora's eyes narrowed down. "How can you say that, Riku?! She's obviously your friend if she came all the way out here—just to say that _**she **_took your words to the heart!"

"And when did she say that?" I growled. "She just threw my own words back at my face—like a total joke—that I was wrong and that—" I stopped to ponder. _Hate it when he's right… _"Whatever."

"Maybe we should go after her…" said Kairi. "She seemed really hurt… Maybe we all said something we weren't supposed to say to her—something we said must've hurt her feelings."

I sighed, scratching my long white hair. "Geez…" Another sigh—this one with more frustration and irritation combined. "No, you two stay here; I'll go after her."

The girl smiled at me. "Everything will be okay, Riku. We know you can do it."

Right there—in the broad white moonlight—the silver paopu pendant glistened, sleeping against her collarbone. I cringed from the sight. Sora had given it to her just recently, and a _paopu _fruit charm isn't anything you can give to anyone at all. It's a symbol—loaded with much heartaches and affections—all for your Important someone. Someone you deemed extremely significant in your life alone. It doesn't stop there… Only two people can share it as you two are forever linked to one another—where ever you two are, no matter what—you both would still share that unbreakable connection, that important _bond. _One sky, one destiny.

I glanced back at Sora's collarbone that bore the exact pendant…before looking down at my right jean pocket—the silver paopu necklace I too was going to give to Kairi.

"I'll be back as soon as I can." I began to head down the hill. "You two go to sleep."

"You can do it!" I heard Sora shout.

_Hate it… _I bit my bottom lip. _This feeling…_

Yet, He's my best friend.

* * *

Author's Note: To my awesome Followers, thank you for reading the series so far~ Without you guys, I wouldn't even have a reason to continue posting! Thank you! I really appreciate it!


	16. 15::Namine::Replications

**::15:: Namine::Replications::**

Heading out into a world of nothingness—a world of Darkness, I was already trembling when I opened the dormitory door. Looking out over the Fields below, surprisingly—our lamp posts were all dead. _Did every bulb stop working? _I then became a bit more aware of the suspicious setting it's become and went down the spiraling steps to the ground.

In the distance, I could see a shadow—whom I assumed to be Xion.

She and I hadn't been talking much lately, so I'd love it if we could finally have an understanding. Somehow, I just knew that she might have a problem of her own. I had been wondering if I should offer her help or anything she needs of assistance.

"**Xion!"** I called out.

"Little girl."

I froze.

A dark void slit open from the Nothingness, and from it, a shadow figure came out—wielding a Keyblade. His golden eyes glistened in the light of Kingdom Hearts, and I slowly cowered back from his towering frame.

"Namine, isn't it?" He smiled sinisterly. "I heard you calling out into the Darkness, dear. I never thought we'd have to meet again."

"**Namine!" **It was Xion's voice, and when I looked past the mysterious stranger, what I saw shot fear into my heart. At the hill's foot, multiple shadow monsters with long crooked ears and yellow eyes were holding her back. She struggled to free herself. **"Get Axel and Roxas!"**

I whipped around—only to see Darkness enveloping me in its forceful embrace. **"!"**

"**Hey, let them go!" **Roxas leapt from the door above and landed before Xion, wielding his two Keyblades. He quickly took out the dark critters, freeing her from their grip. "Vanitas!"

"**Quiet, Ventus!"**

"!" His eyes widened. "What—Namine!"

While I was halfway pulled into the Darkness, I tried reaching out for him and Xion. "You guys, run—or they're going to take you two as well! You mustn't…!"

Hot fireballs came hurling out of nowhere, inflicting damage to Vanitas. He, who had been standing in between me and Roxas, staggered back. "Ack! Who the heck…?"

"Dude, are you messing with my Triplets?" The red-head stood in front of his two friends, bearing the blazing Keyblade. "If you don't want to get branded again—hand over Namine, will you?" His emerald eyes glowed in a deep, venomous hue. "…I can't let you have her. **Remember it!"**

"Another **lab rat?"** Vanitas chuckled. "This is really my night!" A light of mischief shone through his demonic irises. "Lord Xehnort will be so delighted to hear about this!"

"L-lab rat?" Xion echoed.

"..and you, Witch…" The shadow boy looked over his shoulder and sneered down upon me.

"I'll take care of Her." A pair of hands grabbed onto my shoulders from behind, and I looked up—only to see a familiar face meeting mine. "Come, Namine."

_R-Riku? _I thought, confused.

His warm green eyes bored deep into mine. "No, I'm not Riku."

Before I could react, the cloaked boy pulled me toward him—and with it, Darkness devoured the two of us completely.

"_**NAMINE!" **_

Roxas…


	17. 16::Roxas::A Revelation

**::16:: Roxas::A Revelation::**

"**NAMINE!" **In a fit of rage, I exploded into striking at Vanitas blindly with the Keyblades. I missed, and to further my anger, I hurled hits from right to left at the shadow boy. **"Give her back!"**

"Ooh, angry, aren't we?" he teased me. Vanitas evaded every blow from the weapons I wielded, and when I was about to perform an uppercut, he swiftly knocked one of the Keyblades from my hand—"But you shouldn't let it get the worse out of you, okay? Unless, you want to fall into Darkness…" He then shoved me hard onto the ground; however, Vanitas flinched—

Xion's Keyblade came crashing in between us, and the older boy leapt back in reaction.

"That was close…" Vanitas murmured.

The weapon flashed back into her hand, and she and Axel were running over to my side. I sat up slowly, with both weapons gone. _Did he go see Ventus as well? _My jaw tightened at the very thought. _What is Vanitas? What does he want—and why did he take Namine? _

"…_you may not understand it now, but Namine—our new friend—is very special." Axel said, running his fingers through his red spiky hair. "…She knows it, and as much as I admire her courage, I fear the worst for her."_

"_How special is she?"I asked._

"…_Whatever she draws comes to life, Roxas." He stopped to turn to me. "That's not common in the magic arena. Even Eraqus doesn't know how to deal with that kind of stuff." His green eyes darkened into an ominous hue. "…Namine said she had no memories of whatever—except for her __name…and a dream that was filled with nothing but wind and Darkness. I believe she's told you that, already?"_

A dark void opened from behind Vanitas. "Well, failed Chosen Ones, since I got what I came for—there is no further need for me to toy any further." He shrugged, and as I was quickly running to him—the portal closed up.

I stopped to a halt, with my heart beating so madly. **"Come back!"**

"Xion!" a voice called out.

We turned and to our shock, Riku was running down the grassy hill toward us three. I raised an eyebrow toward the girl, and she made a face back at me—one that was filled with irritation and annoyance.

"What happened here?" Riku asked in between breaths. "Where's Namine?"

Xion glowered at him—something I haven't seen her done before. "What's it to you, Riku?"

"I—I was coming, and all of a sudden, these shadow monsters came at me—and I heard you all fighting and calling out Namine's name."

Axel quickly came in between both him and Xion as to ease the tension that was building up. He shook his head and gently pushed them away from one another. "Long story, dude." He intruded. "They found her—and came for her."

A gush of wind whipped against us four, and I whirled around to meet the new presences approaching the area. I instantly bore my pair of Keyblades in response to the potential threats, but instead—it was only Ven, Terra, and Aqua who appeared before us.

With a grim expression, Aqua stepped forward slowly. "Where's Namine?"

"They nabbed her." Axel replied, grudgingly. "We tried to stop them and save her—however, the Darkness came and—"

"…so, they succeeded." Terra murmured. "Damn those Heartless…"

"We failed as well, then." Ven chimed in. "Not even the Third day, and they already came for her…" He averted his attention to me. "I think…this is because they needed her for an urgent matter—something that'll be taking place very soon."

"What would that be, then?" asked Riku.

Axel swallowed. "The World Banquet."

The annual night where all of the princesses from their Worlds come to gather around at the Academy—and have a banquet in which leaders everywhere are invited.

"What?!" Xion gasped. "Th-that's a few days from now…!"

"…Okay, someone needs to tell me what's going on." Riku said, nonchalantly. "This is really bugging me, and I need answers now. If you all want to save Namine, you might as well count me and the other Destiny-dormers in—since I'm already caught up in this mess." He paused, eying me carefully. "And you…Roxas…there's no need for that type of hostility anymore since your friend needs you than ever before."

She was with us for only three days, and on the third night, They already had her.

* * *

I laid down on the grass, watching the stars sparkle about across the indigo satin sky. I closed my eyes and breathed slowly, trying to calm myself—trying to make sense of the crisis that's happened and what would happen soon as a result. To be honest, I didn't know who I should seek help from—except from the Oblivion and Destiny Trios. There was Master Eraqus too…

Riku had gone home. From what it seems, he and Xion must've argued quite a lot—that sent him stomping back to the Destiny dorm.

On the other hand, Ven and his friends decided to stick around—snooping their nose around the Fields and such—looking for clues.

"Though it was only three days, you two had become extremely close."

I didn't need to open my eyes to know whose voice that was. "Really, Ven?"

"Yeah."

"Since when did you care so much as to pay that much attention to me and Namine?"

"…I don't know." I heard him sigh. "…I guess I was sort of jealous."

I opened my eyes. _**"You jealous?" **_I laughed. "Right…"

"Tell me, Roxas," Ven slowly sat down by my side, "are you two friends…or just more than that?"

"I don't have time to think about stuffs like that." I answered.

"…Then, she must've been more important to me if I had time to think like that."

My muscles stiffened, and I sat up. "What are you trying to say?"

"…Never mind." The blonde abruptly rose from his seat and shoved his hands into his pants pockets. "Terra and Aqua are probably wondering where I wander off to now."

I too got up. "Before you go, did you know that guy?" I asked.

"Know what guy?"

I narrowed my eyes. "…Vanitas." I stopped. "It was weird… I fought him this morning and told him my name—but when we fought again tonight—he called me…Ventus."

Ven's eyes continued to stray around my face. "That's right." He sighed and scratched his head with reluctance. "I see…that he fought you too." He stopped. "Vanitas…thinks we're the same person. I guess—after he fought you this morning, he mistaken me for you and followed me. Confusing…I'd say." His blue irises hardened into blazing ice. "He said you can wield _**two **_Keyblades, Roxas."

I swallowed.

"…I just don't understand it anymore, honestly." said Ven. "It's like…you were supposed to be a Gift-tie, Roxas, but they placed you in the Nobodies—as though they were following some kind of agenda, you know? Like…we're all in some show…"

My eyes never wavered from his.

Two people.

Two mirrors.

Two reflections.

And somewhere between us, there's a revelation…

That's for us to only know.


	18. 17::Sora::Fragments

**::17:: Sora::Fragments::**

"Do you think Riku's okay?" I heard her ask me.

We had been standing outside of the dormitory, waiting for his return, when Kairi decided to break the silence. My fingers began to fumble about, with the silver necklace running around my neck; my eyes wandered around the night sky and dark rolling hills below the opened entrance gates.

"Yeah…" I stopped. "…You know, I think Riku means a lot to Xion."

"You think?"

"…It's just…I'm kind of sorry that I yelled at Riku like that," I paused, "but she came all the way out here…and he just—"

Kairi nodded, sadly. "Riku…just finds it hard to accept that fact, probably."

"You're right." I bit my bottom lip. "After all, he's spent his entire life—with us two only."

"Maybe Riku's afraid of change."

"Do you think that's possible?" I asked.

"…I don't know." She shrugged at me. "It's like…a tug-of-war in his heart between Light and Darkness. Riku's scared…that if there's more Light than he's already used to—something horrible will happen, and Xion's that extra spark of Light."

I shook my head. "I don't get it."

"You probably won't." The girl flashed me a smile. "Because…this is Riku's heart we're talking about—not yours, silly."

I smiled back. "That's true."

Suddenly, a gust of wind gathered about the front yard—followed by weaving shadows that nearly swallowed the already dark night sky. I flinched, overwhelmed by the abrupt darkness which towered over us. With my heart beating fast, I grabbed onto Kairi's arm quick as she too was taken by the deep blackness.

We both flashed out our Keyblades.

"Th-these shadows!" Kairi whimpered. "They're not monsters!"

_What are They? _I thought in panic.

I quickly lunged at the approaching shadow hands—and it merely evaded my attack, splitting into two and then sliming back altogether. _**!**_

By the time I looked back at Kairi—she was gone.

"**Kairi!"** I cried out. "Where are you?!"

My eyes flickered around, scanning for her frantically.

_**! **_A shadow hand swarmed around my ankle—its grip being firm and tight, planting me to the spot alone.

"Ha!" I tried to swing the Keyblade at it, and to my surprise, the hand pulled at my ankle—yanking me to the ground.

My head crashed the surface with a harsh pound, blurring my vision. I cringed, and at my left, the Keyblade too had fallen. I tried to reach for the weapon…weakly and slowly.

The ground…the surface was pitch black—no grass, no sticks, no dirt, nothing.

I wasn't at the Academy anymore.

"Kairi…" the words croaked out.

I finally got a good hold of the Keyblade.

"Your battle ends right here." A mysterious voice echoed.

Something stamped itself onto my hand, firmly. I cringed again from the stinging pain, and managed to avert my full attention to the shadow boy. It was his black boot, and he was sneering right at my face.

"Hello there, Chosen One." He chuckled.

With sheer force, He then kicked the Keyblade out of my hold—and the weapon flew into the unknown dark depths…where I could not see.

For some odd reason, the two of us were glowing in this shadow world…

"I suggest that you should go to sleep." He said to me.

With my eyelids falling heavier and heavier—I tried to fight the exhaustion, the sleepiness, and the curse.

As He slowly faded into the background, a white light flashed into his right hand, and in its place was a black Keyblade. Aware of the danger now approaching me, I clenched my teeth—cursing the sudden spell casted over me.

The boy laughed upon my weak body. **"Good night."**

_Kairi…_


	19. 18::Ventus::The Plan

**::18:: Ventus::The Plan::**

"…What?" His blue eyes widened.

"That's right." With my heart burning with vengeance, I continued, "You and I should switch clothes. Vanitas is after you, Roxas, and he's going to come back any time soon." Inside, I was trembling with fear but… "He's going to want to fight you again—with two Keyblades."

"W-wait!" Roxas' irises quickly flared. "If he comes back, I'm going to let him capture me—so, I can go save Namine!"

My jaw tightened. "You just don't get it, do you?"

Aqua came in between us as our noses were nearly touching one another. She shook her head at the rising tension and averted her attention back at Terra, who quickly turned away.

"Terra, help me settle this!" she cried out.

"Why don't you ask Zack to do it?"

"**Terra!"** the young woman hissed. "He's my boyfriend—not my slave!"

In frustration, I pushed myself away from Aqua's arm as she continued an attempt to separate us. I stomped my feet against the ground, feeling as though I might explode in blazing rage—resisting the powerful urge to snap—the force to scream at my idiot-brother.

"Xehanort…" I croaked out. "No…**Xemnas**…is trying to capture all of the Academy's strongest Keyblade wielders for his ultimate plan, the World Banquet…" I paused. "And you…must stay here to keep his Last goal from happening."

"What?!" Roxas gasped. "B-but what does it have to do with a Nobody like me?"

"And you, Xion…" Aqua chimed in. "...you, Axel, and Roxas—"

"We don't have time to explain now." Terra piped in—ever so casually. "Roxas should switch clothes with Ventus as soon as possible." He flashed his Keyblade at my brother, narrowing down his brown eyebrows. "The three of us take on the Frontlines for now while you other three take on the Last."

Everyone stood around silently in the Academy Square as the fountain water continued to trickle.

"…Roxas…" I heard Xion utter.

"Namine." His head jerked up with attention—just the sound of her name was enough. "Is she really the only person you can think about at this time?" I clenched my teeth. **"Well?!" **Roxas quickly stiffened. "What about the millions of people here? The Academy? The World? **Other Worlds?!"** I hastily flew past Aqua and grabbed onto the idiot's collars. "If you save only Her, will she be happy…to see that you've given up on the Universe for her sake alone?"

Roxas' eyes never wavered from mine, burning with a fire—much like the one inside me. The blonde grabbed onto my wrists, and while his full attention was on me, he firmly pushed my hands away.

"I need you…to cooperate with me, Roxas." I continued. "Got it? I need you to be **rational."**

Silence.

"…All right."

I smirked upon his wise response. "Good."

* * *

"Ven…"

It was almost time, and I could sense it from a heartbeat away. My body was tense as I popped up the collar of Roxas' white jacket. I turned around, only to be face-to-face with Xion's warm sapphire eyes.

"…You like Her, don't you?"

_Oh, so that's what it was… _I thought, laughing.

"…You're jealous of Roxas."

I tilted my head, flashing a smile at her. "And…why does it matter now?"

"…I want to tell you…" Xion stopped, with her eyes wet. **"Thank you."**

Terra put his hand on her shoulder from behind, surprising the girl. "You have to go."

Xion nodded. "…It's not that you want to meet Namine—but that you're protecting Roxas himself even though he hates you—even though you're envious of him."

"…I think that's funny." I closed my eyes and turned away from her, fighting the overwhelming wave of sadness choking at my heartstrings. "...I may be protecting him, and I may just want to see

her. But I'm not going to Namine as myself…I'm going…as Roxas, because that's who she'll only want to see now." I paused. "She doesn't want to see me. In fact, she doesn't see me—she sees Roxas."

I flashed out the Keyblade, opening my eyes—allowing the tears to slip down my cheeks.

From behind, I could hear the footsteps scampering away—and being taken whole by Terra's heavy presence. I turned around to meet his face, biting my bottom lip.

"…Hanging there all right?" he asked, patting my head.

"Yeah." I wiped the tears away with a free hand. "I'll be okay."

"He's coming." Aqua's voice intruded. She stood before me, ready with her weapon and decked out in shining armor. With the night breeze closing onto her, her short blue hair swept against one side of her face. Her eyes were narrowed against me and Terra. "Behind you. The vortex."

"The Twilight Trio were safely evacuated." Terra and I quickly turned around to see the spiraling black portal. "We're going to have to deter his attention from the Academy dormitories."

"Zack should get my message at sun-up." Aqua said. "I leave the Academy in his hands."

I whisked out the blazing Keyblade in hand, ready for combat. "And I leave the Last…in my brother's care." The white moonlight was reflecting back against my shoulder armor. "Just hope he and the others…get off the stage soon."

"Aren't we all in some kind of freak show now?" Terra chuckled, darkly. "It was all in the Plan."

"He's coming!" Aqua whispered.

_**!**_ We all flinched as a flooding river of shadow hands busted out of the black vortex—ready to grab hold of us, ready to take us, ready to—

Before I knew it, I had fallen into a world of pitch darkness, a ditch of endless depths, a world of cold wind and despair.

A deep voice called me.

"_**Roxas."**_


	20. 19::Roxas::The Set-Up

**::19:: Roxas::The Set-Up::**

"…What's going on?" I narrowed down my eyebrows and quickly flashed out my Keyblade before the small shadow critters. In front of us were massive black thorny vines slithering in our way, accompanied by the monsters. "This…"

"…They must've failed then." Xion whispered.

Axel bit his bottom lip and fixed himself into a combat position, with his Keyblade in hand. His green eyes became burning emeralds. "I haven't fought like this for a while…"

"Ha!" I hurled another bashing hit on the shadow monster, blowing it up to black dust. "Got that one!"

On my right, Xion swung her weapon into a critter's stomach, knocking the thing into smoke—while Axel had just managed to slice through another's head, leaving it to acid.

I smiled through the dirt I've received from the shadow creatures before collapsing to the ground in a huge heap. Exhausted from the long fight, I sighed, resting my head against the cool Keyblade. My eyes wandered up to the sparkling stars and its black satin night. For a moment, I closed my eyes…trying to catch some rest.

"The fight's over now." Axel said, withdrawing his Keyblade. "We should head over to the dorm quick before anyone else comes over to check on the noise level."

I opened my eyes reluctantly and sat up to look around.

The grassy fields in which we fought in was a mess of black ashes deteriorating from our hits, evaporating into dark vapors. Just over the two hills up ahead—was our dorm and the other Academy dormitories.

"Why are they all coming at us?" I asked Axel.

"…It's an invasion." Axel whispered.

"…Axel, I have a question for you." Xion intruded, gravely. Her face paled at every word coming from her lips. "…Are the monsters coming for the strongest Keyblade wielders just as they had come for Namine?" she paused, averting her attention to me. "…Are they?"

Axel cursed beneath his breath and began to walk ahead of us in long strides.

"Hey, answer us!" I cried out, chasing after him. "We need answers!"

The red-head abruptly stopped—causing me to run head-on into him. I backed away, feeling my aching head…

Standing before us was a heaving Riku—with sweat-plastered white hair, ghostly pale skin, panic-stricken eyes, and claw marks through his tank top. He snapped his attention at me and then Xion. In his grip, the Keyblade trembled crazily—as though it had gone mad.

"Th-they came…" he huffed. The teenage boy nearly crashed down to his knees—worn down by the battle he's fought on the way. "…They came…and took…**Sora…"**

_**! **_My heart stopped.

_Sora… _I thought. _ He's one of those Gift-ties…with the peculiar Keyblade…_

Yes, I've met him a few times around the Academy campus—a noble Keyblade wielder, I call him, as he was always looking out for fellow students and classmates alike. The guy always had a smile on, carried a strong sense of justice, and was really friendly to even the Nobodies—a person that no one could actually hate nor do they even have a reason to. He was always with that Kairi girl—I think…his girlfriend—the one with the shoulder-length red hair and blue eyes. Brown spiky hair, blue eyes, a lean built—he wasn't just any Gifted.

To be honest…I had always wanted to be his friend.

I looked over to Riku. "Then, They must be going around—capturing every able Keyblade wielder then."

He was sitting on the ground, staring at the Keyblade in his hand. "…Organization XIII."

"What?" I raised an eyebrow. "Or…ganization XIII?"

"…Roxas…you really have no idea, do you?"

"Now, you're starting to sound like Ven." I paused. "If you guys have answers—spit it out already. Stop beating around the bush."

"You're right." Riku's eyes met mine. **"Roxas, this was a set-up."**


	21. 20::Xion::The Organization

**::20:: Xion::The Organization::**

"…A set-up?" I echoed.

"All this fighting—all the kidnappings…" Riku's eyes darkened. "It's a trap, and there's no way we can hide it anymore." He stopped, getting back onto his feet with the weapon still in tact. "Roxas, you and Xion are the Hidden chosens."

"What are you talking about?" I asked. "There's no way! The two of us were rejected from the Gifted class the moment we set foot on this campus!"

"What's going on, Riku?" Roxas cut in, with frustration. "Explain…everything—just as we explained Namine's story to you."

From up ahead, I heard Axel's heavy sigh, and before Riku could speak, the red-head simply whipped around with a solemn attitude—the sparks gone out of his eyes.

"This is getting annoying." Axel said.

I stared hard at the older boy, quietly.

"Riku, just drop it." He continued. "I'll take it from here." Axel looked over at me—then, flickered his attention at Roxas for a split second. "Way back in the Old Days, there were two best friends—King Mickey from the Disney World and Ansem the Wise from this World. There were wars—being fought with magic, and so, the two decided to create a new land, a new World where children can be taught white magic to defend all Worlds from greedy good-for-nothings."

"It was supposed to be a sanctuary from those who resided in the Darkness, those who had wicked means and craves for power—and for a while, it was… But Ansem the Wise had a student, a man named Xehanort, who wanted to use the new World for his own selfish purposes—so, he broke ties with his teacher and created a group called Organization XIII."

"Now, Organization XIII's goals were to infiltrate the new World and its people. They wanted to use the people for their magic purposes and for their hearts. They do it by kidnapping young Keyblade wielders and convince them that they _**need **_power—and once the kids are brainwashed, their hearts succumb to the Darkness that eats it. Once they succumb to Darkness for good, Organization XIII lets them go loose until they reach their limit and die at the hands of the noble Keyblade wielders—thus, becoming shadow critters (the one we fought earlier) called Heartless. When they become Heartless, they no longer have hearts—because their hearts had been harvested by the opponents and automatically sacrificed…to Kingdom Hearts—the source of infinite power, the source of Life of all Worlds."

My eyes trailed over the looming white heart-shaped moon, which floated ever so silently above us.

"Anyway," Axel continued, "…when Xehanort created Organization XIII—rumor had it that he just suddenly got up and left his lead position—and disappeared without a trace. When the Organization members began to fight for power, a new man appeared out of nowhere and beat them to the seat…a new man who also decided to take over the Academy after Ansem the Wise left in search of Xehnort." A dark shadow casted over Axel's grave face. "…That man…was Xemnas."

_**!**_ I felt my heart dropped.

"_Xehnort…" Ventus croaked out. "No…__**Xemnas**__…is trying to capture all of the Academy's strongest Keyblade wielders for his ultimate plan, the World Banquet…" He paused. "And you…must stay here to keep his Last goal from happening."_

"The new Headmaster…" I uttered. "Namine…Ven…Aqua, Terra…Sora…"

"It all makes sense now." Roxas spoke. "But where do we Three stand in the plan?"

"That's for us to find out." Axel answered, roughly. "For now, let's head back to the Twilight dorm and rest up…" he stopped. "We'll have to infiltrate the Academy's Headmaster quarters tomorrow for clues."

"…Why isn't anyone reporting the corrupted Headmaster then?" I asked. "Where is this King Mickey? Where is Ansem the Wise now?" My voice cracked. "If this is supposed to be some kind of sanctuary or Haven for children with magic—why are we getting attacked by the same people who were supposed to protect us?"

Silence.

Riku sighed to himself and withdrew his Keyblade in a flash. "Kairi's waiting by the Twilight dormitory, protected by the Defense spell I've casted over her." He met my eye for a split moment before walking up ahead. "She's scared enough as she is—and if we don't hurry up, something might happen to her."

I didn't move.

Axel strayed for a bit, waiting for me to catch up with him and Riku—but after seeing my state, he went on—without another word. Roxas, however, stood before me, quietly—and with patience as always.

"We have to go, Xion." He said to me.

"This is completely stupid." I growled. "How can we sleep, knowing that your own brother and Namine and countless people had been kidnapped?" I stopped, willing him to meet my eyes. "Tell me, Roxas… Aren't you worried about Ven?"

The blonde's eyes eventually glazed over. "…Yeah—probably more than you and Axel would've thought." I saw that his hands were curled up into tight trembling fists by his sides. "In fact, makes me feel like a total jerk—just thinking about it. Two twin brothers both jealous as heck of each other. Never thought it'd be like this…"

I swallowed. "…Yeah."

Talking to Roxas…somehow calmed me down.

"It seems silly to sleep this whole night off, Xion." continued the boy. "But a great Keyblade wielder must have sleep to be able to function properly."

"…Did Ven tell you that?"

"Once." He paused. "…Twice."

With reluctance, I trailed after him—walking up the dirt path and back to the Academy dormitories.


	22. 21::Ventus::The Beginning

**::21:: Ventus::The Beginning::**

I was sleeping while wrapped by Darkness, dropping into the unknown depths of onyx. Not knowing where I was, my heart would not stop pumping its very own existence—driving me drowsy with its frightened lullaby. I wanted to so badly wake up next to Terra and Aqua, whose whereabouts remained a mystery as of now.

I opened my eyes and just as I did, I found myself landing on my two feet—nearly stumbling over myself. A bright light fell upon me entirely as I looked about, wondering where I may have landed at for there was nothing but Darkness looming in from everywhere I looked.

With a Keyblade in hand, I stayed alert, searching for a way out of this world.

"…The World…That Never…Was…" I hesitated, surprised that I seemed to be familiar with this odd universe. Confused, I began to step forward. "…How…?"

_You heard me._

I swallowed. "…Did I?"

_Yes._

"…Who are you?" I asked.

_Who am I?_

"Yes, you." I bit my bottom lip. "Show yourself."

…_I cannot._

"Well, then," I continued, "may I ask you a question—if you don't mind?"

_What is it?_

"Do you know a girl named Namine?"

_Yes._

"…Is she here?"

_Yes._

"Where?" Hope was pulsing alongside with my heart strings. "Can you show me where she's at?"

_This way._

In an instant, the light went out for a moment, catching me off guard. The grip on my Keyblade's handle tightened furthermore, and suddenly, there came a white lonely path from beneath my feet…and into the distance before me, all formed into a straight line. I looked to the side where the Darkness lingered about, and to my shock, I came to realize…that I was standing on a fragile platform-path.

"…Thanks!" I exclaimed.

_You're welcome._

And I ran, ready to take on anything that comes into my way—anything—as I embarked on this journey, to meet Namine, and to be reunited…with my friends.


	23. 22::Terra::Sudden Conflict

**::22:Terra::Sudden Conflict::**

"...Terra."

My eyes slowly opened, feeling something cold, and when I began to make sense of where I was at, I heard the soft hush of the silver rain. I slowly sat up, feeling the icy, brittle ground, and looked around—searching for Aqua and Ven. My eyes snapped over to a figure, sitting up before me, with her knees up against her chest—arms wrapped around them…as though she were afraid.

Frail.

But strong.

"What happened?" I asked Her.

Set in the shadows, her face didn't changed at all—her cerulean eyes soft and tensed at the same time. Her blue, short hair falling and shifting at every other moment as the chilly breeze caressed her gently. The girl looked over at me and immediately sat up straight, dropping her arms. She got up before I could say anything and summoned her Keyblade, Rainfell.

"Ven is missing." said Aqua, in a low voice. "He must've gotten separated when we fell into that black vortex. Vanitas is crafty… I give him credit for that."

"Where do you think we are now?" I asked, getting back onto my feet. "Maybe Ven's here too—just somewhere else…" I stopped to look around the dark world, noting that the rain was falling from above. "…If rain is falling…that's the Sky. What kind of World is this?"

"…I don't know." Aqua admitted. "But I…don't think Ven's here."

"**!" **I clenched my jaw tightly. "…All right then…" I flashed out my Keyblade and held it in front of myself, willing for the Earthshaker glider to appear.

But it didn't.

"It's not working…" I murmured, re-examining the weapon.

"I know." She narrowed down her eyebrows and began walking up ahead. "I tried it too."

"This doesn't make sense." I said, following her. "We can summon our Keyblades…but our Gliders are unable to appear." I stopped, noticing that she wasn't responding. "Aqua, are you listening?"

"Sorry." She replied, turning to face me. Her eyes were soft again—filled with concern and overwhelming stress. "It's just…I hope Ven is all right—being out there by himself—and that the Master…is faring well too. Safe."

My heart…stopped.

"…Don't worry too much." Resting a hand on her shoulder, I continued, "Ven can take care of himself! After all, you taught him well on how to work those offense skills of his, and I recently gave him defense tips not too long ago. The Master…" I paused to think. "He's strong. He can handle the situation himself, because, well, that's…that Master for you."

"Thanks, Terra." Aqua flashed me a weak smile, sending my heartbeat into a complete halt. I quickly removed my hand as she averted her attention back into the route before us two. "Now that I think about it, you're right. Ven's grown a lot over the past two years, and the Master—he'll be fine, of course. After all, he's got Roxas and the others with him."

I swallowed, feeling the sudden awkwardness settling in between us two. I coughed and tried not to follow behind her too closely.

"And then…there's Zack." She murmured.

"Oh, that guy…" I glowered.

Perhaps, I spoke it too soon when the teenager suddenly whipped around, and there's nothing more dangerous right now—than a woman with a weapon in her hand, looking pissed like she was about to kill.

Me, of course.

"What is with that tone of yours?" asked Aqua, raising her eyebrow. "You and Zack… Never being able to get along for even one second when I turn my back on you two."

"There's nothing wrong with him." I rolled my eyes and continued to walk—but she had stopped, with arms crossed against her chest. The Keyblade gone. "Umm…"

"Oh, really?" With irises glaring against mine, I swallowed. "Then…you should be hoping that he would get my message and sort out the chaos that is happening in place of our absences."

"He's not a Hero." I said, grudgingly. "You have to admit that. He's not going to be one ever, and maybe you should stop making him seem like one—when he's obviously not."

"**What?!"** Aqua with hands on her hips. Yep. "Take that back, Terra! I wasn't trying to make him sound like a Hero! And yes, he is! He's a Hero—at least in my eyes! He's a wonderful person, a wonderful man, and a wonderful boyfriend—and that gives him enough credit to be my Hero anytime!" She stopped, with teeth gritting together. "You don't need to save someone to be one—when your actions can save many lives through one simple response."

"And that one response is by being a **highly egotistic, two-faced punk."** I retorted back.

"How dare you…!"

"I'm just stating the obvious of what I see from my own eyes."

"Well, in my eyes, _**you're **_the highly egotistic, two-faced punk!"

"Oh, is that so?" I raised an eyebrow, willing to stare her down. "Well, fine then!" I threw my hands up in the air and turned my back on her, walking into the opposite direction. "If that's how you see me then, you should've told me from the start!"

"Why would I tell you that from the start when we both just met? Only an idiot would do that!"

"Well, keep yelling and throwing all your hate on me, Miss Keyblade Master! Because it's just getting better to what I'm about to say then!"

"**You…!"** I heard the girl stomping her heels against the ground. "Get back here!"

"No."

"You're just jealous that the Master named me Keyblade Master!"

"Maybe I am." I admitted, darkly. "But at least, I'm not the one trying to show off how 'responsible' I am in the eyes of the Master when he's already crowned you that Title. That's just a way to rub everything in my face—and Ven's too."

"Don't bring Ven's name into this, Terra!" Her voice softened. "…Come back here."

"No, Aqua." I turned around, seeing that we were already a good twenty feet apart. "You know what? Zack's so important—just like that Title the Master had given to you. If you think of those two as highly important—I'd rather not work with you then. I can find him on my own."

"Terra…" She began to step forward, with a sorrowful expression. "…I mean it. Let's not split up over this petty argument. Com'on." Then, in a more pleading tone, _**"Please."**_

"A petty argument, you call it?" I growled. "My problems are petty to you?"

Almost immediately, I didn't know what was coming over me—other than anger, hate, and pure jealousy—the negativity of what makes my life called Life, that is. I was overwhelmed by all these vibes I was giving off, by what she had said, by this argument—and although I knew it was childish, I couldn't help but to feel…so much resentment toward Aqua.

For what?

Well, easy.

For being the Best.

I had been training with the Master far longer than she had—until she suddenly turned up at our doorsteps on a sunny morning, of course.

And to figure out that she was a Girl—was already bad enough for me to keep my pride under control—and the competition she proved to be—to so easily knock me down with a wooden Keyblade toy in front of both the Master and Xehanort at the age of twelve.

Petty.

Sure.

"…Yeah, they're all petty when I think about it." I said, reaching into the pocket of my hakuma pants. I slowly took out the amber-painted star, with its classic shine. "…But times have changed, you know."

But then,…things got pretty complicated when I turned fifteen—and all of a sudden, Aqua wasn't just a girl with her growing breasts and tiny waist—with the curves starting to show, that is.

It wasn't when she got that one-piece swimsuit once we entered the Academy together.

And it wasn't when she started getting second glances from the other guys in our classes.

Or that time when Saix pulled her to the side, Demyx playing his guitar for her, that…Tidus showing her new sport tricks, whatever it was…

When I was fifteen, she was just herself.

Same old Aqua.

Something just clicked in my head when sitting in front of the birthday cake that she made, with Master Eraqus patting me on the back and Master Xehanort grinning from the sideline.

"Terra, are you all right?" Aqua asked.

One moment, the World was chaotic. The next, the World suddenly made sense.

When I looked up from those rainbow-colored candle sticks, there She was.

Sitting right there to my right, smiling and giggling to herself with those rosy cheeks and blue eyes.

And when the Master asked me…to make a wish.

The first thought that came to mind was, 'I want to be a Keyblade Master.'

And after the party, when I told her that, she thought it was brilliant.

Master thought it was brilliant.

But then, she told me I wasn't supposed to tell her my Wish or it wouldn't come true.

Then again, at the time, it didn't matter to me.

"…I told you my Wish, even though I knew it may not even come true." I said. "And it wasn't because you were just there, Aqua. It was because…" I stopped.

"Yes?" Aqua tilted her head to the side. She was slowly approaching me… Ten feet to cover, still. "…Continue."

"…I wanted to be a Keyblade Master, because…of you." I stammered.

Her eyes widened. "What?"

"Because—" _**!**_

The ground beneath us began shaking violently, and when I looked up, it was as though the Sky had opened up—and black boulders as dark as the shadow, began pouring down toward us two. I flashed out my Keyblade and turned to her as she too took out hers.

It was raining only minutes ago…

What the Hell is happening?

"Aqua!" I cried out.

The girl turned to look at me, with her eyes light up—and everything, almost smiling—

Her lips began to move—but everything became dead silent to me as the ground beneath her suddenly exploded, caving into a million pieces—collapsing altogether. She lost her footing, and I quickly jumped with my hand out for hers.

"**Grab my hand!" **I yelled.

"Shit!" She locked her fingers into mine as I fell to the ground, lying on my stomach, inches from the fallen edge—as she dangled from it. I had managed to grab her entire hand, trying to pull the rest of her up. "Damn…"

"Just don't let go." I stammered, with my hand sweating. "Sorry for the sweaty hand…"

"Not sexy." She admitted, with a weak laugh. "But…I don't care—as long as…" Aqua whimpered a little, trying to not look down. "…I'm still alive…"

Her hand began slipping, and each centimeter only tightened my heart furthermore—almost stopping at every moment.

"Hey, just hold on." I said, pulling her up slowly. "I-I'm going to pull you up, and we—we can go look for Ven together!"

"…Thanks, Terra."

"No problem." I laughed a little.

"…But I don't think I can go with you."

"What?" I almost froze. "A-Aqua, what are you saying? Did you break something? Aqua?"

I couldn't see her face as she continued to look down into the dark pit beneath her.

"Hey, stop looking down!" I said.

"…Let me go."

"I—I refuse!" I growled. "I don't know what you're thinking but—"

…As a reply, I heard a squeak…and then, another…and another…

I gently inched closer to the edge, careful to not let her go, swearing to myself that I wasn't going to let her go—hoping that it wasn't what I thought it would be.

And there wasn't just one, dangling from her right leg.

There were hundreds, each clinging to the leg above them—and finally, Aqua's.

"**Fuck."** I cursed beneath my breath, summoning out my Keyblade. "Why didn't you say anything at all—"

"…They're…multiplying."

"It's okay." I tried assuring her. "I will just obliterate them with Earthshaker—"

"Terra, make me a promise."

I swallowed once more, forcing my eyes to meet with hers.

"…Even if you do that, they'll just keep coming…on Vanitas' command." She stopped, with our noses within inches from each other. "…Find Ven, and if you run into Zack, tell him…I'm sorry."

I opened my mouth to say something—but before I could utter a single word, the girl quickly kissed me on the cheek.

And let go of my hand.

_**! **_I choked on my words, watching her fall so gracefully into the Darkness, with millions of glowing yellow eyes feasted on her body alone.

"**AQUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"**

_So much resentment toward Her._

_For what?_

_Easy._

_For being the Best._

_The Best thing that's ever happened in my life._


	24. 23::Xion::Brittle Night

**::23:: Xion::Brittle Night::**

"…Xion."

I turned away hastily, trying to avoid Him. Hurriedly, I attempted in brushing past him, leaving the balcony—but to my surprise, his large hand shot out and grabbed my left wrist. I stiffened and stumbled back as the older boy continued to pull me towards him. Tightening my jaw, I gave up and looked into his green eyes, grudgingly.

"…Xion, let's talk." said Riku.

"…A brittle night, is it?" I laughed bitterly.

"Why are you acting like this?" he asked, holding onto my other wrist as well. "I want you to explain."

"…Did you want to be friends with me—just because I resembled Kairi?"

Dread flickered against his irises for a split moment before Riku slowly released me from his grips. He swallowed, casting those eyes against the floor.

Silence.

"_You know what?" Sora said to me. "You and Kairi sure look alike."_

Something hot snuck up against the corner of my eye, something wet…and burning with utter humiliation. For a moment, I hated myself…and Riku…and Kairi. I hated everything that made up Riku himself, everything that he did, everything that he said—just about every single detail that came to mind. My heart was swarmed with so much hate, sorrow, jealousy, and…bitterness.

"You're the lowest!" I cried out, angrily. "You jerk! You deceitful person! You heartless two-faced **bastard!"**

With my eyes blurred by tears, I bit my bottom lip…while the tears came streaming down my cheeks.

And slowly, very gently, a warm hand came down to my left cheek—stroking it for a few seconds that seemed to last forever.

I closed my eyes, willing myself to stay like this with Him…for as long as possible. When the hand was lifted from my skin, I opened my eyes once more and came face-to-face with his burning emerald eyes—irises of which was filled with grief and regret.

"…I like you." Unable to suppress my feelings any longer, I continued softly, "…I really, really like you, Riku." I quickly threw my arms around his waist, burying myself into his gray tank-top—inhaling the icy cologne—his warmth—everything. **"…I like…you, Riku!"**

And he didn't say a word…wrapping me with his arms as well.

* * *

Not far from where the Two stood, behind the closed glass balcony doors, a girl stood ever so quietly. Having overheard the private conversation by accident, she had gasped to herself…stunned by this series of revelation. A breeze fluttered against her red hair, and her hand quickly went to the silver Paopu charm hanging across her chest.

"Oh, Riku…" she murmured.


	25. 24::Roxas::The Spell

**::24:: Roxas::The Spell::**

The entire world in which we all stood on trembled violently, unleashing a wild rip of quakes across the Campus. I had been standing on guard with Axel while Xion and the others were resting up inside the Twilight dormitory when suddenly, the whole Academy itself was shaking with unmanageable anger—a roar that seemed to have taken my Heart by fear.

"Axel, what's going on?" I asked the red-head.

**"Look, a Heartless!" **a voice screamed out.

Axel turned to look at me, and immediately, I knew that we both had to go out and evacuate the entire school population for safety. I nodded quietly and while we were leaving the dorm grounds, I heard Xion yelling overhead from the balcony, "Roxas! Axel!"

We both averted our attention to her, Keyblades in hand, as she leapt down to our side.

"Wait for me, will you?" she pouted.

Riku leapt down from the balcony as well, and Kairi too.

"We don't have much time." Axel said, solemnly. "The Oblivion Trio is gone, and even the Headmaster will figure that out by the end of tonight." He paused. "He may have Sora from Destiny, but he'll need Riku…and Kairi too!" The young man turned to Riku. "We will need to mix! Going as one huge group will only make things easier for Them, but if we mix up partners from different Teams, it'll make things harder for them—it should stall Time!"

"I'll go with Riku." I volunteered.

Riku's eyes widened in surprise. "…A-Are you sure?"

I shrugged.

"…Then, I'll go with Kairi." Xion spoke, and the red-headed girl smiled.

"I'll go by myself." Axel said, looking around. "I'll need to meet up with Zack and Cloud and get them to evacuate the entire school population. While I do that, Roxas and Riku will go check out the Headmaster's quarter. Xion—you need to take Kairi to a safe place—a place to hide."

_**! **_The rest of us were instantly puzzled.

"Because…Kairi will be the First to complete their ultimate mission." Axel continued. "No time to explain." He looked over at Xion once more. "And you…you need to hide too."

I was then overwhelmed by the confusion and tried to meet Xion's eyes—but oddly, she turned away silently and nodded to Axel's orders.

"Understood." She whispered.

Before I could grab her shoulder, Xion and Kairi both sprinted off into the night—one girl dressed in pink with her red hair billowing back into the wind…another with her black trench-coat—looking as though she were flying into the Darkness.

* * *

_"Roxas!"_

Riku and I had been running for a while, swinging our weapons from right to left, cutting and slicing up the Heartless creatures into evaporated dust. Stunned by this awfully familiar voice, I stopped in my tracks with my heart beating so uncontrollably. Hope was throbbing, and I seemed to have stopped breathing, yearning to hear Her voice once again.

_"Roxas!"_

She called again.

"Roxas, what are you doing?" Riku shouted. "We need to infiltrate the Headquarters now!"

I swallowed, shaking off the delusional voice. "Right…"

The Headquarters, located in the very back of the Academy campus, stood grimly before our small figures—looming into the gray night sky. I narrowed down my eyes and hesitantly approached the closed iron gates placed between us and the building. I brought my Keyblade in front of me, willing for it to unlock the giant Keyhole of the gates. It was a foolish thought…but something told me…a voice…

"It's locked." said the silver-haired teenager. He scanned the area, suspiciously. "Oddly…no Heartless here. There must be some kind of barrier—something that is keeping them away from this place." He paused, pondering and pondering. "…a spell?"

"Maybe the Source, the Cause of all this is still in there." I suggested, my weapon unmoving from its position. "…Maybe He's in there." I stopped. "Hey, Riku, do you think our Keyblades can be the Key to this Keyhole?"

"…Could be." He nodded. "Allow me to try first."

"Sure." I moved aside, with the weapon facing downward to the ground.

"Hmm…" Riku walked up to the gates quietly and stopped to touch the giant Keyhole. "I think...it's like this—like how Sora showed me."

_**! **_My head shot up at that Name. _Sora?!_

He quickly pointed the Keyblade at the lock.

Nothing happened.

"Strange…" the boy turned to look at me. "It's not working."

"You said…Sora showed you a trick like this before?"

"Yeah," Riku answered, "he said he had a dream like this situation—except…he wasn't himself—he was seeing through someone else's eyes and that he was standing before the Headquarters, staring through the gates like how we are now. That kid…" he stopped, chuckling to himself. "…had all sorts of weird dreams."

"Allow me to try then." I said.

It worked.

As soon as I pointed mine at the Lock, a bright white light filled up the Keyhole, nearly blinding us as we shielded our eyes. When the light vanished and we looked again, the obstacle had been diminished, and in its place, there was an open path for us to walk in and to the Headquarters mansion.

"So…I guess it depends on the Keyblade Wielder." Riku murmured.

The older boy quickly moved ahead while I, on the other hand, stood alone quietly…staring past the opened path that had unfolded before us two. I swallowed, looking down across the shining Keyblade I had in hand, glinting against the white moonlight. _Could it be…that…_

Something wasn't right.

Sora…

And I…

Could it be?


	26. 25::Namine::The Curse

**::24:: Namine::The Curse::**

"Oh no…" I stared into the sketch book, willing to speak out to Roxas once more, watching his scribbled figure freeze against the paper surface. Dropping my colored pencil, I held my breath. "No, Roxas, don't…"

"What's wrong, Namine?" a smooth, velvety voice asked from overhead.

I flinched, attempting to hide the breathing sketch from the man. He leaned down and brushed his red rose softly against my cheek.

I turned away, covering Roxas with the sweaty palm of my hand. "Nothing…"

"Nothing, eh?" asked Marluxia.

I bit my bottom lip. "This isn't fair to Roxas, this isn't at all."

"Yes, it is, my dear." Whispered the man. "We need him…to complete the Plan, to complete…" he paused to look out the opened balcony behind him. "…Kingdom Hearts." A large white heart-shaped moon loomed against the graying sky. "We need Sora."

My heart nearly tore at that Name.

"Don't you remember anything at all?" he continued. "Don't you have…your memories? Your Heart?"

I cringed. _Remember… Remember what?_

"_Namine!" His bright blue eyes met against mine. "I won't forget you, I promise!"_

A large hand quickly whipped mine away from the paper, and Marluxia swoop up the sketchbook into his hold. "Oh my, my, my…" he chuckled with devious delight. "Roxas…my old friend…"

"_You were right, Namine…" Roxas smiled genuinely at me, holding out his hand towards mine. _

I gripped against the colored pencil harder…until it snapped.

"My sweet, my little witch…" The man so casually dropped the sketchbook to the ground and began to walk out into the balcony—from the cold wind began to sweep through. "Remember who you are. Remember why you are here and what."

Hot tears rolled down my cheeks as I slowly fell out of my chair, my knees fallen against the icy floor, and my long blonde hair swept over to the oblivious drawing.

Tiny droplets fell from my eyes and into Roxas, unable to reach him…unable to even call out to him as I had done earlier.

"Roxas…" I whispered. "Roxas…"

_I'm sorry…_


	27. 26::Roxas::The Rain

**::26:: Roxas::the rain::**

I was just standing there, watching Riku run, and for a moment, Time must've stood still for me and me alone as all of a sudden, I heard a pleading voice—one filled with such palpable pain and sincerity of which I couldn't ignore or possibly missed.

_Roxas…!_

My heart nearly burst at the sound of Her voice again.

Almost instantly, thunder exploded across the night sky, causing me to flinch…and causing Her to disappear once more. I whipped around, hoping to see Someone, and to my disappointment, there was no one. My blue eyes slowly rose into the dark starless sky, only to meet Kingdom Hearts.

I felt something wet on my cheek. _**!**_

Like…tears.

"Namine…?" I murmured.

And all of a sudden, rain began to trickle down against the earth like an endless swarm of spears—spears of pain and sorrow and heartbreaks.

Knowing that there wasn't much time left to begin with, I quickly turned around and began running up the dirt path which led to the towering Headquarters mansion.

As I sprinted, I remembered the faces of all those who were dear to me: Axel, Xion, Namine, and Ven. I remembered the faces of my classmates and rivals: Riku, Kairi, Sora, Terra, and Aqua. I recalled their bright genuine smiles, their laughter, and their hearts of light… I recalled those who might be counting on me now, the warm eyes of an Angel, the twisted grimness of Xion, the scolding from Ven, the way Axel seemed to know everything, and the strange connection…between me and Sora and Vanitas.

Me and Sora.

I could've swore…that the faster I ran, the harder it rained that night.

Like someone…praying…praying so hard that I won't ever have to wake up from a Dream.


	28. 27::Star Loop Seven

**::27::Star Loop Seven::**

"Fifty-five percent in progress."

A ring of ten shadows stood about the enormous white room, each person with a weapon of their own from spears to exquisite musical instruments. Sitting before them, on a high majestic throne, sat an older man with long white hair and golden wicked eyes. He was unfazed, staring down venomously against the lone figure reporting to him.

"If we take Them out, perhaps it'll progress even faster." said one of the shadows.

"Fool, it'll only take even longer!" The Speaker lashed out.

"…And what of this Roxas?" asked the white-haired man. A cracked smile slit through his lips as he leaned forward, curiously.

"He's coming." Another voice answered. Everyone turned to look at the boy, who wore the face identical to Sora's friend. "Master Xemnas."

"**Replica." **Xemnas murmured.

Replica's cool green eyes met against the Master's.

"Even those eyes…" the man stopped.

"…_I'll walk the way to Dawn!" the boy cried out, pointing his Keyblade at Xemnas. _

"**You traitor!"**

Suddenly, to the man's surprise, one of the Ten cloaked shadows quickly struck down the Speaker with a Keyblade, and when one of the remaining Nine grabbed hold of the culprit's trench-coat—it came to reveal the attacker as a Mouse, cladded in belt-decorated outfit and enormous shoes.

"King Mickey?" Replica murmured in shock, strapped to his frozen spot. "What…?"

Xemnas' golden eyes widen before darkening into an uncontrollable anger. "King Mickey, how dare you…!" Leaping off the white throne, the man plunged his dark hand into the Mouse's chest, willing to dig out the Heart. "How could you interfere with my Plan?"

"I came to give the Chosens more Time!" the warrior yelled out, struggling to pull himself free. Then, using the Keyblade, he whipped the weapon's sharp blade against the man's stomach—forcing Xemnas to release him. "You have ruined the very Sanctuary that Ansem the Wise and I have built for these children, and not only that, you had the guts to destroy the Hopes and Light they had followed for so many years!"

King Mickey flinched however when the Nine Nobodies revealed their glinting weapons, a few burning with fire. He then swallowed and kept guard, looking about the towering figures—all of whom were approaching him quietly and steadily.

"You are quite the fool to believe that you can stop Time so easily." said Xemnas. "For I have hidden the Hourglass well from the likes of you." A sickening wicked smile implanted itself into his lips. "You have only come to your eternal doom just as Ansem have left the Academy to fade away…into Darkness."

"You tricked him!" King Mickey clenched his teeth. "You got him to leave the Academy and all of the Keyblade wielders with you!" His eyes widened. "Wait…is that the Hourglass?"

Alerted by this, Xemnas and the Nobodies turned to look over their shoulders—only to see Replica standing in the white throne while holding up the tiny Hourglass.

"Replica, what are you doing?" Xemnas asked in panic. "Put that Hourglass down and get away from this place."

But the boy didn't. Instead, with his cool green eyes, Replica averted his slow attention back to the Organization members and held onto the object tightly. He narrowed down his eyebrows and turned to look back at the intruder with a glint of hope.

"He said he came to give the Chosens more Time." said Replica. "I used to wonder how I came to be, where Namine came from and how she came to be, and everyone else too." He paused to hold the Hourglass before him into the air. "Well, now, I want my Answers, and I'm sure Everyone else wants them as well."

"**NO!" **The Nobodies screamed.

Without second thoughts, the young teenager dropped the glass object.

"Things will change." Replica murmured, softly, eying Xemnas. "You might and may not see the same People day after day. Events will repeat. Time will not move forward. You are stuck. You will be figuring out puzzles. You will be sad. You may cry. You're going to discover things within yourself. "

The sound of glass breaking and colliding with the white floor echoed across the entire castle.

"This…is the curse of a Time Loop." Replica smiled. "…Good luck, Roxas."

Almost instantly, a bright white light filled up the entire building structure, blinding Xemnas, the remaining Nobodies, and King Mickey.

_**! **_Tightening his jaw altogether, the small warrior was nearly taken back with the strong shining light and heavy wind currents deriving from its source. _What are the attributes of this Hourglass?_

"**Curse this!" **Xemnas screamed. **"Replica, you have gone MAD!"**

But his scream was instantly drowned by the wind currents, capturing his entire figure into Darkness.


	29. 28::Roxas::Parting

**::28::Roxas::Parting::**

Slowly, we walked in the darkness, having just entered the mansion through the front doors—and oddly enough, no one even came to greet us or…stop us.

It was almost as though the legendary Headmaster's quarter, the Mansion, was grand and white—feared and respected throughout the entire World—yet, at the same time…here we are, Riku and I, casually strolling about. There was nothing to see or meet except for Darkness—like the entire building was nothing but a cage for this vast, empty space of Black.

"I find it eerily suspicious." Riku finally broke the silence. "This place…seems to be Nothing."

"But it has Something." I assured him. "I can feel it."

We had been wandering aimlessly for a while now, hearing the pounding echoes of our steps the entire time.

"Wait, Riku!" I tried to grab him, but the older boy continued to walk ahead of me. "Wait!"

My gut feelings. Bad.

"Do you hear that?" Riku asked. "It's coming from that direction—far ahead—like…a howl."

I swallowed.

And the howl was spiraling toward us both, looming in louder and louder and louder—

Instantly, without either of us calling for it, our weapons quickly flashed out, ready in our hands in combat position. I felt the Keyblade vibrating so violently as the entire space we were in trembled as a response. **! **I tightened my jaw.

**WHOOSH!**

A hard brush of wind shoved us off our feet and as I fell against the ground, I quickly scrambled back to my feet—however, to my surprise, the ground met my face once more. I panicked and held onto the Keyblade more tightly as the wind dragged my feet down beneath me—pulling my entire weight into the looming Darkness ahead.

It was sucking me in.

And the current was quick and clean.

"**RIKU!" **I screamed out.

"**ROXAS?!" **My head snapped up towards the open entrance doors where both Xion and Kairi stood. "What's going on?!"

_Wait, what are you two doing here?! _I grinded my teeth together, with the jaw clenched as I lashed out angrily, "Get away from here! **Now!"**

Xion, to my dismay, shook her head stubbornly. She glanced back at Kairi, who nodded back in return before the two of them leapt into the streaming vacuum wind—with me on the ground.

"Where's Riku?" Kairi asked.

Just before I could answer, I heard someone calling out my name in the distance—and when I looked over my shoulder—Riku was on the other side of the room, clinging with his might—against a large white door. Behind the opened door, I saw that there was nothing but a whipping black hurricane ready to devour us all.

"Roxas!" I looked up again toward the entrance doors—and Axel stood there, with a pale panic-stricken expression. "X-Xion!" With a darker, harsher tone, he cried out, **"Xion, didn't I tell you to run away with the Seventh Princess of Light?!"**

Xion swallowed.

I stared in confusion. _What?_

"Riku needs our help!" Kairi said, ready to pounce her way through the wind currents. "I'm sorry, you guys, but if I don't make it—I want you both to look after him on my behalf."

"Wait, are you going to try to sail your way towards him?" I asked her, incredulously. "You only have one shot—reach him or sail too fast and get suck into the Darkness!"

The redhead smiled upon me, with a tinge of sadness into it. "Yeah, I know, but he's my best friend."

I tightened my jaw. _Damn it! Isn't there another way?_

Almost instantly, my Keyblade shot up forward—into the direction of the Darkness itself.

Kairi, to my shock, quickly let go of the Xion's sleeve and let herself fly through the vast room. In a blink of an eye, she was already at the white door, holding onto Riku's hand tightly—I turned to check on Xion—and she too was already gone. My head quickly whipped over towards Riku once more, and Xion was holding onto his other hand.

She was pointing her Keyblade toward the entrance doors where Axel was at—as the weapon tried to hover slowly and away from the churning hurricane. Xion was trying to save the two by herself. Xion. Reckless. And stubborn.

"What do you think you're doing?" I asked her, my voice nearly drowned out by the wind. **"Xion!"**

Suddenly, I got up with my Keyblade in hand.

It's telling me to go with the wind.

There is Something, still, that we cannot see—which must be destroyed.

"**Roxas!" **It was Axel, with his pleading green eyes. "Don't! Don't go!"

"**I have to!" **I yelled back, loudly. "Xion and the others need me—" My hear nearly stopped. _**!**_ Before I could do anything else—the wind speed had sped up, grabbing me by full force and plunging me toward the Darkness. **"AHHHH!"**

"**ROXAS!" **Axel screamed.

Luckily, though, I was able to reach out and grab onto the white door. I looked down into the black hurricane pit and saw that Xion grabbed my free hand. Behind her, Riku and Kairi both clung go—their legs flying into the direction of eternal black.

"H-Hold on, Xion!" I managed, trying to summon the Keyblade back. "I'll get us out of here! I know I can!"

"No, Roxas." It was Kairi, and her blue eyes were glazing over with tears. "Don't. You shouldn't, I'm afraid."

"Wh-What?"

"This World needs you, Roxas. If I don't go now, the Organization will always be coming back for me—and with me gone, they'll have one less reason to get in your way."

"What are you talking about?"

"Roxas, you are Special." Kairi continued. "You are a part of Sora, and They'll need you the most to make their plans a success." With her grip on Riku's hand loosening, she then added, "If we are scattered furthermore—I believe this would delay their Plan." Her soft eyes met with Riku's wide green irises—"I'm sorry, Riku… Looks like Sora and I will have to make you play Hero for us this time." And instantly, she let go—allowing herself to fall slowly and for the Darkness to consume her wholesome body.

"**KAIRI!" **Riku screamed. **"No!"**

I wasn't able to grasp the full reality of everything yet when to my further shock, Riku plunged himself into the Darkness after her.

"R-Roxas, I'm sorry! I have to…!" Xion's teary eyes met with mine.

"No, don't let go, Xion!" I cried out. "Please, don't let go!"

She did it.

She let go.

"**NOOOO!" **And as the hot tears flooded my cheeks, I moved my empty fingers. **"XION!" **My voice began to crack—and I couldn't take it any longer—all this pain of losing my loved ones, all of this madness that seemed to turn…our perfect Sanctaury into a living Nightmare—the Nightmares that I was trying so hard to escape from. **"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" **


	30. 29::Axel::An Unsaid Goodbye

**::29::Axel::An Unsaid Goodbye::**

It happened so fast.

One moment, I was on the run—slashing down those damned Heartless jumping about the Academy campus grounds—hoping and pleading—begging for this Nightmare to be over.

Heck, I was scared shitless.

Not because there were hundreds of monsters roaming around, destroying our "perfect" World.

No, it just wasn't that.

It was because I didn't want to lose Them.

Roxas. And Xion.

There was little Namine, so fragile and all alone—but no, They took her too.

By God, I was cursing this sick kind of Reality to play a trick like that on me—I mean, a cruel trick—like, did I do something to deserve this? To lose one of my dearest friends within the blink of an eye? I took my eyes off of that small girl for one second, and before I knew it, Roxas was down on his knees, screaming her name…and the tone of it was just too much—I didn't want him to be alone like that, even though he had me and Xion with him. He needed that girl.

He needed Namine.

"Axel, what's going on?!" In the distance, there was a young man running into my direction—and I came to an abrupt halt, with the Keyblade by my side. "It's me, Leon!"

"The Heartless has broken loose." I said to him, solemnly. "The spell that Ansem placed upon this World…has been terminated by a Dark force, Organization XIII."

"Shit…" Leon muttered beneath his breath. Then, in a more clear, louder voice, he asked, "And have you seen Xemnas?"

"Not lately nor did I ever see him tonight." I answered.

"I'll call up Aerith and see if she could scout the other side, with Cloud, for injured students." The brown-haired man said. "Have you seen Zack around yet?"

"Why?" I asked him, raising an eyebrow. "Are you and him still on bad terms?"

"Not that." Leon sighed. "He and I made up already—just that…whenever I try to talk to him, he's literally on the run all the time, scouting strange locations on the Academy campus—especially with that Aqua girl."

"Huh…" The right corner of my lips tugged. "Amusing… Well, that's Zack for you. You should know that."

"Hey, you two!" a loud, energetic voice cried out.

Without a doubt, that was Zack hollering at us, and when we both turned to look, he was already sprinting about—slicing off a little Heartless head here and there—with that enormous, shining blade of his. Even with his dark hair spiked up and the little slick bangs just over his blue eyes, you could see the wide smile in Zack's lips—curving at the feeling of adventure.

"What's happening?" He stopped before us two. "I don't remember Xemnas calling for a Halloween Town makeover."

"Hey, Zack, do you mind heading over to the Academy's heart and turning on that public announcement thing?" I asked him. "We need to evacuate the students of this Academy to a safer place ASAP."

"Sure, I'm on it!" He gave me the thumb-up and just as he was heading out, a crumpled note fell out of his pants pocket. "Eh?" The young man slowly squatted down and picked it up, opening up the note in the process. "…This…is from Aqua."

"What?" Leon and I cried out.

"What did she say?" Zack shot me a raised eyebrow. "Well?"

"…She said…" Instantly, his lips curved down. "That…girl!" With irises flaming up, Zack quickly looked over at me—with a hard, dead-serious expression. **"You there!** Go find Roxas! You need to hide him and Xion immediately—along with whoever's with them! Now!"

"But I already had them scout out Xemnas' mansion and have the Seventh Princess in hiding!"

"Xemnas' place?" Leon raised his voice. "You had…**Roxas go over there?"**

"I—" I stopped, horrified at what I had done. "…No, Roxas."

"He can't find out the truth!" Zack nearly stumbled back and threw the note down to the ground. "Shit, shit, shit! He can't! Roxas!" Then, quickly composing himself together, "Aqua girl, you and I will have to have a serious talk when you get back!"

"He was bound to find out sooner or later, Zack." said Leon, being observant of the atmosphere. "Didn't you remember the words of Ansem before he left?"

"Roxas is like a brother to me." Zack shot us a dark look over his shoulder. "…I don't want to lose someone like him—again."

"Wait, Zack—where are you going?" I cried out.

"I'm going to find Vincent!" And those words said, he took off into the masses of Heartless up ahead.

The grip against my Keyblade tightened, and I too prepared to take my leave.

"You need to get Roxas back here." said Leon, crossing his arms. "The kid's Heart probably can't take on what he wasn't supposed to find."

"Didn't you say he was bound to know sooner or later?" I asked, looking into the distance.

"…Yes, but he will need people he can trust—to explain it to him."

"…The kid's already confused as he already is." I said.

"But not confused enough." Leon pointed out. "Not confused enough…to the point where he would have to seek out answers and look into his own Heart for the right questions."

"…Whatever." I retorted.

* * *

And there he was, Roxas on the ground before me—with Xion and Kairi.

My legs were trembling as I tried hard to focus, to summon the Keyblade. And I tried and tried but I couldn't—and I fell down to my knees. One moment, the girls were there—and as soon as I looked back, they were already so close to the Darkness—trying to save Riku alone.

My heart quickened and soon, became heavy with fear, hope, and other mixed emotions that I couldn't name—all for Roxas, who was glancing back at the three. I swallowed as I caught on that fixed look of piercing determination in those blue eyes of his, his rigid posture as he slowly stood up before my eyes.

"Roxas!" I cried out, desperately. **"Don't go!" **

_I beg of you._

He met my gaze, unfazed by my pleading eyes.

"**I have to, Axel." **He said back to me. "Xion and the others need me—"

I froze, watching the kid fly back—helplessly—**"ROXAS! NO!"**

Fortunately, the blonde was able to grab onto the door—but to my horror, he was grabbing onto Xion's hand, who was also clung by Riku and Kairi. I tried to speak as Roxas struggled to pull them all up with one arm. However, I couldn't—

"**NO, XION!"**

My heart dropped, plunged, and…

"**XIONNNN!" **

A hot tear fell from my eye.

Shattered.

"**ROXAASSSSSSSSS!"**

All I could hear was the terrifying scream of me…reaching for him.

But he was gone.

And my fingers.

Empty.

So empty.

Like my Heart.

"...I'll come back for you two…" Another tear from my emotionless eyes. Trying to grasp this sick kind of reality. "…You, Xion…and Namine, even…" My heart. "…Got that memorized?" Gone.

The door had already closed.

The wind had what it came for.

My everything.

It took my everything.

I fell onto my knees.

"…Remember…that."

* * *

_Author's NOTE__:_ I want to thank you all for following me for this long! I'm really sorry that a few of you thought the series had ended already (I don't know if it's because it has been a while since I've last updated), but it's almost over :) Thank you!


	31. 30::Roxas::Perle Reunion

**::30::Roxas::Perle Reunion::**

"Roxas."

I stirred a little, my world being pitch black, and as I slowly opened my eyes, a bright blinding light nearly flooded through them. I closed them once more, covering my face over with my left hand carefully—before I felt something soft sleeping against me—my cheeks, my hair… My blue eyes snapped open at the instant realization, and I sat up abruptly—only to look around and find myself in the very center…of what seemed to be an endless meadow.

Flowers were everywhere—daisies in bursting full bloom, with their white petals and yellow pollen, slightly shifting at the hint of breeze. My jaw opened while I struggled to remember how I came to be here, where I had been before…and then, the memories—the flashbacks came seeping back. I clenched my teeth before noticing the warmth of sun bathing me, and I looked up.

"Where…am I?" I muttered.

"Oh, good." A familiar voice spoke. "Looks like you didn't fall too hard, after all." I hesitantly turned around, a bit scared…that it might have been simply a dream. "I'm glad you're not hurt… At least, I hope you're not."

"You're…" I swallowed, my eyes meeting hers—locked into those pools of ocean-blue, her long blonde hair…her signature white dress. "You're…you're okay!" My heart instantly melted. **"N-Namine!" **

Afraid that she was going to disappear, I quickly pounced against her, my arms wrapping her tiny body in a tight embrace. "Namine! Don't ever do that again!" I cried out.

"Roxas…" I heard her spoke, but I didn't pay too much attention, holding her frame close against my body, my face smothered into her hair—smelling the fragrance of daisies. "A-Are you okay?"

"…I'm fine." I whispered. "Definitely okay."

"…I'm glad."

To my surprise, she sounded more sad than happy to see me again. I pulled away slowly and for a moment—we were both in an awkward position, with me on top of her—our faces within a few inches—her breath under my chin—her large eyes never wavering from mine.

I blushed and quickly got up, brushing the grass off my clothes.

She too stood up but more quietly.

I then remembered that I was wearing Ven's clothes, and I was shocked that she was able to tell us apart—tell me apart from him.

"S-so, where are we?" I asked her, trying to keep the casual, cheery tone.

"…My dream."

"Eh?" I blinked. "…Dream? What do you mean?"

"…We're in my dream, Roxas." She explained to me, solemnly. "…Which means we don't have much time before Marluxia comes to check up on me. He has a knack of sensing my powers being in use—even while I sleep."

"Who's Marluxia?" I asked her.

"…Marluxia is an Organization XIII member, who was ordered to keep watch over me as I am their prisoner at the Castle."

"W-wait, so you're in a room—sleeping right now?" I asked.

She nodded. "Yeah, that's right. When I'm not working for him, I'm free to do whatever I wish until I wake up. Then, it's time for me to work again—drawing out their plans and making sure they happen." The girl paused for a moment, hesitantly. "Even when you guys were being sucked into that Dark force…it was my doing because he forced me to."

"…What happened, Namine?" I was trying to get the hang of the current situation. "You say that he works for the Organization, but you make it sound like…you're not working for the Organization as a whole—but rather, for him alone."

"That's because I am, Roxas." She answered, sadly. "…If I didn't…he would…"

"Would what?"

"…He would…tell the others…where you're at, right now."

_**! **_I swallowed. _Namine!_

"You honestly don't have to worry about me—you don't have to do this just because of me!" I burst out. "It's okay! Let them do whatever they want! I can take them on!"

"Roxas…if the others knew where you're at now—they would've killed you."

"Why?" I asked her—and frantically, I grabbed her by the shoulders. "Why is everyone going after me? Why am I being protected?"

"B-Because!" Her blue eyes suddenly softened, threatening to spill out tears. "Because you're the Hidden One, Roxas! You complete the prophecy foretold! You're…!"

Coming to my senses, I let her go. "Prophecy? So…" I stopped. "…I was part of a Plan? A Plan that…everyone knew and took part of—except for me?" Instantly, the flash of Xion's expression…when Axel was giving out orders to her came back to mind. "…Even…Xion."

My eyes traced over her face, her wide blue eyes, the soft blonde bangs, the rose-painted lips, and the exposed neckline. Before I knew it, my hand had already come up against her cheek, my face inching towards hers—almost as though I was in a spell. I stopped as her two fingers pressed themselves at my lips gently.

"Roxas…" she murmured, with the eyelids growing heavy.

"…Why…" I whispered.

I was slowly pushed away, and as she passed by me, my hand shot out and grabbed hold of hers firmly—pulling the girl back against my frame.

"!" Namine froze, trying to pry her hand from my grip.

"Can't…we just stay like this a bit longer?" I stammered.

"…It's time for me to go now."

"No, it's not." I stubbornly persisted. Even without looking at her, I felt…my own Heart breaking. "Namine, I want you to stay. I need you to stay. Here. With me. Out there."

"…That won't be possible because if I leave my physical body—I won't be able to delay their Plan." She replied, faintly. "…Even if I were to be in a physical body, the results would still be the same."

"…Why is it that Marluxia have his own plans? I assume they don't know about this."

"And again, you're right. They don't." With a sigh, she continued, "He wants Kingdom Hearts for his own—unwilling to share with the others. Apparently, despite the possibilities that Saix may have been catching on—Saix also seems to be keeping quiet…for his own personal agendas as well."

"Saix…?" I remembered that name, belonging to an older classmate—the guy with spikey blue hair and…golden eyes—someone who used to hang out with Axel before I came along—then, Xion.

I then noticed the relaxation of her fingers clasped into mine, the warmth from them, and the sweet smell of daisies streaming from her long, blonde hair. I inhaled deeply from the endless sunny scenery before me, my back against hers.

"…Roxas, believe me." Namine added. "…We will meet again when everything blows over."

"When?"

"…I don't know."

"...Namine…" I paused, struggling to find the answer lying deep within my own heart. "…You're important to me." There. I said it. But… The images of Xion and Axel flashed before my mind as I tried to find the exact meaning of what I meant. "…You're…not just anyone that I care about."

"I'm glad." I could feel her smile through those small words. "…The fact that I'm a Somebody in your mind…makes me happy."

However, before I could live through this precious moment—she immediately freed her hand from mine.

"You're really important to me too, Roxas." She slowly turned around, with a smile spread into her lips. "I hope you remember that."

"Namine!" I stammered, hoping to reach her Heart. "I…!"

I felt a soft push, and by the time I grasped that she had pushed me back—I looked over my shoulder—and saw that there was already an opened dark portal—the way back to where I had come from. **!**

I tried reaching for her, shocked that…

"Be safe." Namine whispered.

My entire world fell into a slumber of Darkness once more.

* * *

I opened my eyes, only to find myself lying on a deserted city street, my face looking into the looming black sky overhead. I laid there, unmoving for a moment…closing my eyes once more—hoping to see her again; however, when I realized the current situation—what should be more important to me now—my eye snapped open again. I sat up, remembering Ven and the others. My friends.

"Shit." I muttered. "Need to pull myself together."

A hot tear slipped down my cheek.

I slowly reached for my skin, flooded by tears. My heart for any opened wounds.

There was none.

"Why…am I crying?" I whispered into the dark.

"_Tell me, Roxas," Ven slowly sat down by my side, "are you two friends…or just more than that?"_

"_I don't have time to think about stuffs like that." I answered._

"…_Then, she must've been more important to me if I had time to think like that."_

_My muscles stiffened, and I sat up. "What are you trying to say?"_

"…_Never mind." The blonde abruptly rose from his seat and shoved his hands into his pants pockets. _

I sat, feeling hollow…

"…My Heart won't stop hurting." My fingers slowly pressed against the chest as I searched blindly for any signs of bleed. "…I feel…like I'm missing something, a piece…" I swallowed as my mind came to a clean halt.

"…Is…this **Love?"** I whispered.


	32. 31::Roxas::The Superior

**::31::Roxas::The Superior::**

"So, you have come."

I opened my eyes, and before I knew it, I wasn't in that dark alley anymore.

Almost immediately, there was sun and clouds dancing across the blue sky—green trees—green grass—people walking everywhere. I hesitated, noting that there was a dark-skinned man standing in front of me, wearing a familiar black trench-coat and matching gloves.

"Hey, that's the Academy's school uniform!" I pointed out.

"Oh, yes, it is." The man said, looking quite pleased that I had recognized it. "And you…must be Ven…no..." He narrowed down his eyebrows together as though he was trying to see through me, into my Heart. "…You must be Roxas."

My blue eyes darted from side to side. "…This…is the Academy." I stopped, making a face—confused as why I have somehow warped here. "…It's…unusually peaceful."

"It's not the Academy as you knew it." He crossed his arms, shifting his head ever so slightly. His long white hair fell against the black hood. "Or at least…not currently."

"What are you talking about?" I asked. "What's going on here?"

I summoned the Keyblade and quickly pointed the weapon at him, scrunching my eyebrows against each other and clenched my teeth together.

The right corner of his lips tugged. "…A short-tempered brat…" But his golden eyes shifted toward the left where I followed carefully.

To my surprise, there was Axel, Xion…and me walking about the campus, eating the campus ice cream brand, sea-salt flavor—blue—cool—and on the wooden popsicle stick. The three of us were laughing as we approached the water fountain, which sat in the center of the campus square. Xion looked over her shoulder where she saw Riku and Kairi trailing behind, talking to one another. Then, Sora leapt out of some bushes and threw his arms around the red-haired girl, surprising her.

"…Wait…why are we there?" I asked. "…I'm here…but there's another Me there… How is that possible?"

"Time."

"What?" I whipped my head around.

"That sneaky little bastard, Replica, managed to grab a hold of the Hourglass, the mechanism that keeps Time at its current flow of state." He paused, almost laughing bitterly to himself. "To think he was a useful pawn… A pity."

"And you." I scowled. "Who are you?"

"Didn't your brother ever taught you to not point such weapons at people—recklessly?" the stranger laughed. "Do not fear. It is only I, Xemnas, Organization Member I…and your Headmaster, of course." At the end, he managed a cruel smile. "This isn't the way a student should greet his high school principal."

"**!" **My jaw nearly dropped; however, I tried to compose myself and got into combat position, ready to hurl myself at him. "So, _**you're**_ the one who released the Heartless on campus—the jerk who planned Namine's kidnapping—the guy who ruined our World, everything!"

"Oh… Namine?" I nearly wanted to punch him for the way he said her name. Almost perverted.

"Yeah!" I gritted my teeth. "Let's fight! You're not going to leave me alone—until you get that, right? Isn't that right?"

"…Namine is quite a charming little creature, don't you think?"

"Hey….are you listening to me?"

"…To think that she was willing to aid me to claim Kingdom Hearts…" With that being said, he turned to look at where the bright sun was sitting—in the blue skies. "…I had never thought that I'd also get my hands on Sora so easily."

See?

A pervert.

"And with you, Roxas, that can finally happen."

"Wh-what?" I slowly dropped the Keyblade. He just keeps on talking… "Me?"

"You see, Roxas, with you as the Final ingredient, I can finally have Kingdom Hearts to myself."

"…Kingdom Hearts…is like a huge cookie jar…with a bunch of cookies…which are Hearts, right?" The only analogy I could come up with. "Like…sea-salt ice cream."

It was probably something I said, because all of a sudden, lights came up into that Xemnas guy's eyes. "…Wh-Why, yes…" he stopped, making a face. "A-and, of course, I need the Key—which is you, Roxas."

It slowly dawned to me…that Xemnas…probably didn't want to help me since he needed me or something…to get his way with Kingdom Hearts. I was confused, trying to make sense out of those facts that were being thrown at me. And it didn't make sense.

At all.

"You see, Sora is what helped start up our Plan." He continued. "Namine is the thread to our progression, with Vanitas as our ultimate catalyst." He stopped, looking back at my awkward figure. "…and then, there's you. The Person who'll help finish our Plan."

**! **I swallowed.

"_Xehanort…" Ven croaked out. "No…__**Xemnas**__…is trying to capture all of the Academy's strongest Keyblade wielders for his ultimate plan, the World Banquet…" He paused. "And you…must stay here to keep his Last goal from happening."_

"…I'm…the Last…" I whispered out.

"Of course, you are, Roxas!" the man exclaimed, excitedly. "You _**are **_Sora's other Half, after all! What you may have known about this World—isn't all what you were supposed to know. And I can tell you this: you are more to Sora than of anyone else that we have encountered."

"…I don't get it." I shook my head, flashing out the Keyblade once more. "No more! C'mon! Let's settle this!" I don't have time for this. "I need to find my friends!"

"Sure." Xemnas smiled darkly. "…If you can manage to defy Time."

I blinked, and the man was gone.

"Wait, come back!" I growled, running to the spot where he had been. **"Come back, Xemnas!"**

"**Roxas!" **I turned around at the sound of Axel's voice. I almost smiled and was going to wave but—"Did you hear?" He had run past my shoulder, nearly knocking me over, and I fell back clumsily with the Keyblade. "Stop walking, damn it!"

I sighed, scratching my head, and glanced over my shoulder. "…Hey, he said that…a few days ago." _**!**_ And it finally came to me—everything. "Wait…so, what that guy was saying…"

I immediately stood up, observing the Axel before me—the way he grabbed my shoulder, how that other Me responded, how Xion's eyes were shifting, and everything that Axel was saying—the words pouring from his mouth.

"…I found you."

I slowly looked over to my right—where a figure had been standing there—it seems—this entire time, quietly.

"...Time." I dropped the weapon, and it vanished in a blink of light. "…I was…warped back three days before this whole thing happened. I don't know what's going on…but…" I fixed my eyes against his. "I want to thank you, Replica."

He smiled, almost like how Riku would do, and swept back his long, silver hair. "I just figured that you guys needed Time—obviously more than what you had."

* * *

_Author's Note__: _Hello there, readers ^^ Merry Christmas! I hope you guys are happy with the most recent chapters! Things are happening! Answers are unraveling! People are changing, and new and old characters are being introduced! Have a safe holiday, everyone!


	33. 32::Terra::The Freeshooter

**::32::Terra::The Freeshooter::**

"Hey, Terra, my man!"

I had been wandering around in the Darkness for so long, I had almost forgotten about my own existence…

I stopped walking and right in front of me—stood an older man dressed a long, black trench-coat. He seemed somewhat familiar, I don't know why, and he grinned almost mischievously at my approaching figure. As I drew closer, it was clear that he had a scar on the left side of his face along with an eyepatch over his right eye. The man also had long black hair, with its crown being silver-striped and revealing growing age. Of course, as soon as I saw that he carried a pair of rayguns, I summoned the Keyblade to be safe.

"What's up with that Keyblade of yours?" asked the stranger.

"…Who are you?" I raised an eyebrow against him.

"Just relax, my old friend." The man smirked darkly upon me. "I see that your memories had been faded greatly to my displeasure. Too bad…that the rest of your friends are a bit too slow, figuring out what's being done to them."

"I don't know why, but if you don't answer my question—I'll kill you right here."

"Ah, is that so?" He opened up his arms before the young man in a dramatic stance, dropping the rayguns to the ground. "There. Now, shall we talk?"

I swallowed. _Why…is he here? And…where and what is this Place I've been wandering in?_

"I see that your girlfriend isn't with you today."

"…Aqua?" I stopped. "…I lost her."

"So…you must've failed to protect her."

"….Xig…bar, right?" I had remembered the name given to me by the Master himself. "…That scar…and eyepatch…and those guns. You must be the Organization member II, **Freeshooter."**

"Bingo!" Xigbar sneered. "I see that your memory wasn't that bad then!" He paused, putting a finger to his lip. "…Unless your old man gave you the names already. Of course…"

"What are you talking about?" I suddenly fell into a fighting stance with Earthshaker. "Memory this, memory that! Why are you here, and what is this Place?"

"This is the Darkness, Terra." The man pointed to the ground, still smirking. "…and I'm here to guide you back to where you belong!"

"…I don't like the sound of that." Without a moment of hesitation, I grinded his teeth together as Xigbar picked up his weapons. "What's happened to Aqua?!"

"…Don't sweat it." Xigbar quickly pointed the guns at me. "She's in safe hands right now—back at our Castle." He paused, cocking his head to the side. "Oops. It slipped."

"Argh!" I plunged the Keyblade into the man's direction; however, with amazing flash of speed, Xigbar was already behind me—with the cold thorns pointed at my back. **"What?!"**

"Kid…don't even try to fight me."

Quickly, I swung the weapon around, barely missing him.

"It's pointless!" Before I could try to hit Xigbar once more, he began shooting a range of piercing lights into my direction. I gasped and attempted to evade them, but thanks to my foolishness, a few hit my side. "Weak! Weak!"

I screamed in pain as I fell over from a failed attempt to evade his attack.

"Now, Terra, you see…you lack power." said the approaching enemy. "Is that all you've got? I just fired once, and you're already down. You lost your girlfriend because you were weak. And now, you're going to die because of the same reason."

I bit my bottom lip. _Dammit… _

The pain was endless as a few drops of blood streamed down my waist. I closed my eyes, using the Keyblade to help me stand—and even then, I almost fell down again.

"Now, I understand…why they call you the Freeshooter." I muttered.

"Exactly." He pointed the guns back at me, showing off the row of purple spikes and arrow-like designs. "…Kid, let me tell you one more time: allow me to take you back to where you belong—or I'll end everything here in this god-damn awful Darkness."

Scrunching my eyebrows together, I stood before him, confused.

_Take me where? _I thought.

But before I could ponder too much on it, my legs were already carrying me toward Xigbar, and I once again unleashed the Keyblade against him—this time, with more speed and power—releasing light into his skin.

I had hit him.

Xigbar hollered in pain as he flinched away, with hand on his eyepatch, dropping a raygun to the ground. He staggered about—before picking it back up and as the man tried to shoot me like he did before, I hurried to deflect the laser-beam bullets with Earthshaker.

"What?!" the Organization member yelled out. "How did you…?!"

"It takes timing!" I smirked as he attempted to shoot again.

Just as I did before, I deflected it back at him, burning his left arm—causing him to lose hold of the gun. I dashed forward and kicked the weapon into the Darkness beyond—where our eyes lost complete sight of it. He cursed beneath his breath, holding onto his injured arm—backing away from my approaching figure.

"…Heh." Xigbar laughed, weakly. "Terra, Terra… This is starting to remind of me of old times—back in those days when everything was still…right."

"?" I was caught off-guard by what he was rambling about.

"You see…you and your friends are the reincarnated souls we've been looking for!"

"What reincarnated souls?!" I refuted back. "You're just feeding me a load of lies!"

"…Y-you guys…were getting hot on our tails, you know?" Xigbar laughed. "So, we got into this really big battle—and we trapped you all! Everyone got trapped! And when you all did, everything was over, you know?"  
I froze, lowering my weapon. "…What?"

"Think about it!" Xigbar continued, nervously. "…Haven't you been getting those weird dreams? Those weird memories?"

"_Terra, where are you going?" Ven asked me._

"…_Somewhere far away from here." I muttered, summoning out the Keyblade Glider. _

I stared down at Earthshaker.

"_So, the Master had you spying on me, Aqua?" I asked her, angrily. "Is it because he doesn't think I am worthy of his trust?!"_

I grinded my teeth against one another.

"_No, Master!" I cried out, rushing over the limp body. "Master!"_

I became stiff.

"…What?" I whispered out.

"…You didn't know?" Xigbar asked in a low voice. **"…You killed your old man."**


	34. 33::Zack::The Legend

**::33::Zack::The Legend::**

"…So, when the Keyblade War happened, the Ancient Heroes died alongside with the real Organization XIII?" I asked, closing the book.

Leon nodded and turned around, searching through the old dusty bookshelf. He sighed to himself for a moment before looking around the grand campus library where hundreds of shelves awaited us still, filled with the lost knowledge that we were searching for.

"From what I know, in order to find the reincarnated Ancient Heroes, Organization XIII found three youths and enrolled them into this Academy after tinkering with their memories." The brown-haired man said, sitting down across from me. He opened the book before sitting back against the chair, lazily. "…Master Eraqus was able to quickly point that out and had placed them specifically into the Nobodies category in order to observe their progress as Keyblade wielders."

"Lab rats." I murmured.

"Exactly." Leon agreed.

"Their names?"

"…Axel, Xion…and Roxas." He answered, gravely.

"…But…" I scrunched my eyebrows together, confused by this new note. "Wait a moment! Why are they called the Hidden Chosens then?"

A giant textbook slammed beside me, and I was startled by the person's sudden presence. He slowly opened the first page, then, scratched the back of his red spikey hair.

"…Because they themselves don't know anything." said Axel. "Those two…Xion and Roxas…don't know that they are among the few who can stop Organization XIII. If Organization XIII can convince them that they have no power, thanks for Eraqus' little mistake, they won't even try—they'll easily fall right back into Darkness."

"Axel…" I swallowed.

"…Apparently, when Xemnas tried tinkering with my memories, he was intruded upon."

My eyes nearly popped. _**!**_

"…Ansem found out about us three and had us immediately under the custody of Master Eraqus." Axel continued. "Hmph… I didn't need his help…but…"

"That's the Master for you." Leon chimed in, with a tug at his lip corner.

"…Where is that old man anyway?" asked the redhead.

"He's here." a wise, aged voice said.

_**! **_I suddenly whipped around, and sure enough, as the guys and I were talking, he happened to be there for the longest time. I got up from my chair immediately.

"Master—" I was cut short when Axel beat me to the man. "Axel, whoa! I think you should calm down, man."

"Your little trio got sucked into their trap!" Axel snapped.

"…I know." The Master said, calmly.

"My friends got sucked into it as well!"

"I know."

"So, what's the big meaning out of this?!" Axel continued. "Sitting here, doing nothing, and reading **old, moldy books!"**

The Master simply stared back at the fuming redhead and then, averted his attention back to me. I gulped as he passed by Axel in a graceful manner, approaching both me and Leon. He stopped before me and turned to Leon.

"Where is Cloud?" he asked.

"He's out scouting with Vincent and Yuffie." Leon answered.

"…I see." The man turned to me once more. "And where is Aerith?"

"She's accompanying the students to the train heading back to Traverse Town." Leon replied. "She and Tifa should be coming back soon since it's been a while."

"**Aerith?"** I raised an eyebrow. "Isn't she the gardener's assistant?"

"Yep." Leon nodded. "Have you two ever met?"

I shrugged, putting my hands behind my head. **"Nope!"**

"You should meet her." Axel suggested, grinning a little.

All the while…the Master had been quiet, watching us converse with one another. From the corner of my eye, I thought I caught Axel exchanging little nods with the man and just when the former Keyblade Master was leaving us, I quickly jogged up to him.

"Uhmm…Master!" I called out awkwardly. I had never really talked to him before, never. "I wanna know why we're in here while the ladies are doing the work out there!"

"…If you find the right book, it can allow us access to Xemnas' secret lab." He said.

"_**!" **_I gasped. **"What?!"**

Suddenly, the ground beneath us shook violently—just like when the Heartless invaded the Academy—and as I tried to maintain my balance—I saw that an enormous, towering bookshelf had tipped over towards the Master himself.

"Shit!" I quickly unleashed my Buster sword against the shelf, tearing up into two. **"Master!"**

I pushed the man out of the way before another bookshelf fell over him.

"**ZACK!" **Leon screamed. **"ZAAAAAAAACK!"**

_It was the very last thing I heard._


	35. 34::Xion:: Meeting Aerith

**::34::Xion::Meeting Aerith::**

"…Xion."

I heard the faint humming wind from overhead, even in the deepest of shadows.

"_Xion, who else am I going to eat ice cream with?" a voice asked._

_I strained to meet his blue eyes, weakly, and my lips opened to speak._

_**! **_I jolted in my sleep, willing for myself to wake up.

"…_Who are you?" the older boy asked, with silver bangs falling across his black blind._

The fragments, so faded yet so real, began to suck me in. While they were just fogs a moment ago, I soon found myself standing before three friends: a tall, slender-built young man with red, spikey hair and diamond tear-drops on both face cheeks; a younger teenage blonde boy; and a girl who looked very much like me…

No, she…._**was me.**_

_Wh-What's going on?! _I thought, with hot tears blurring my eyes.

The tears… The tears…

They wouldn't stop—

"**Xion."**

I jolted from the deep but soft voice, the warm breath which shifted my black bangs, and carefully…carefully, I began to open my eyes.

Riku was leaning toward me, concerned.

"Hey, hey," he said, "are you okay?"

I opened my mouth, "Ri—"

"Oh, you're awake!" a voice chimed in.

Riku quickly rose up from the bed in which I had been sleeping on, and I sat up—only to come face to face with a young woman. Her bright green eyes softened as she smiled upon my presence. She tilted her head to the side, her long brown braid falling over to the left.

"Hi there!" she greeted me.

"H-Hi…" I meekly spoke back.

"You two fell a long way, you know." The woman giggled, cheerily. "It's lucky that Tifa helped me carry you guys all the back to the house. She's fixing the rooftop right now."

"W-we fell?!" I gawked back at Riku. **"AND HOW ARE WE ALIVE?!"**

He merely shrugged his shoulders, looking just as confused as I was. "We're…angels?"

"Angels!" another voice laughed out.

The voice was loud enough to have us turn our heads toward the wooden doorway where another young woman, with long dark hair, stood at. Her lips twitched, breaking into a side-smirk.

"Aerith, I fixed it." said Tifa.

Aerith, the girl standing before me, then averted her attention back to us. "Well, how about we go outside for some fresh air?"

"W-wait!" I stammered. "Where are we?"

"We're in Town." To my surprise, Riku had answered me so calmly. "…The Academy is just a train ride away, up in the mountains."

_How…did we fall right back into Town? _I wondered. _What…exactly happened when Riku and I got sucked into that black hole?_

Suddenly, I came to gasp and grabbed Riku's wrist. "Riku, K-Kairi—"

"Kairi?" It was Tifa again.

I dropped his wrist, hoping…hoping that Kairi was all right, that she was…that she was…

"Kairi from the Academy?" Tifa raised an eyebrow at us two. "She's in class right now while you guys are out here."

_Wait… _I blinked my eyes. _What…_

* * *

"Is…this a church?" Riku asked, loudly.

The two of us stood dumbly in front of an enormous stone church, with twin tall pillars—one standing clean while the other had been badly damaged. To my surprise, the rooftop had been already rotting, with wooden planks showing and some barely covering the entire church. In the furthest distance, I saw the obvious patch-work done to a very specific area where many planks had been nailed together from various directions. I peered in the sunlight, with one hand shielding my eyes.

"Yeah, and do you two want to come inside?" Aerith exclaimed, excitedly.

I had to laugh because she seemed so giddy, like a little girl on Christmas morning.

Tifa met my eye, and we both laughed with one another.

"Well?" Aerith asked.

"Sure." Riku answered, stuffing his hands into the jean pockets.

"You know…" The young woman then made a face, cocking her head to one side. "…You sure remind me of someone I know!"

"I do?" His eyes widen.

"He reminds me of Cloud." Tifa pointed out, crossing her arms. "Doesn't he…?"

"Yeah!" Aerith laughed.

* * *

_Author's Note: _I'm really sorry to all readers, but I'll try to update the story as much as I can~! I'm really happy that you are all still following the story, and hello to new readers :D May the story continue!


	36. 35::Ventus::The Whirlwind Lancer

**::35::Ventus:: The Whirlwind Lancer::**

_This way, Ventus._

I had been running for a while in the darkness, so long that I had almost forgotten about…my own existence, and somehow, for a split moment, I felt as though I wasn't the only one thinking this way. The corner of my lips came out grinning once I saw a faint light in the far distance.

"I'm almost there, Namine!" I called out.

_Be careful._

The voice seemingly vanished, and nothing was left.

"Hey!" I stopped to a sudden halt. My heart began to throb heavily as I was left on my own, staring at a ball of light. "…What do I do now?"

_The Voice just up and left me. _I thought, feeling rather uneasy all of a sudden. _Some…kind of danger? _

"Danger or no danger…" I bit my bottom lip. "I need to help make things right!"

I sucked in a huge, deep breath and grabbed the ball of light.

"**Take me to Namine!"** I yelled out. "Please!"

With that being said, I threw myself to the Light, embracing its gentle warmth with both arms, and the light nearly blinded my eyes as I closed them.

There was silence, and when I opened my eyes, I was floating in the air. Once I had regained conscious, I was dropped almost carelessly and landed on my feet at the nick of time. I held onto the Keyblade in one hand, searching about the mysterious white room I was placed into. The portal in which the Voice had provided me with…led to here.

It was quiet…a bit too quiet.

Then, there before me, stood a beautiful angel. Her soft blue eyes reflected back my shock, quickly filling up with hot tears. She dropped the sketchbook and several crayons to the floor.

"N-Namine!" I exclaimed. "You're okay!"

"…Ven?" she whispered.

"Oh, this?" I tugged at my brother's vest. "Yeah, Roxas and I decided to trade clothes, so we can throw them off for a while!" I stepped forward. "Come, let's get away from this place!"

But once I reached out for her, the blonde coiled back with hesitance.

"?" I opened my mouth. "What's wrong…Namine? I came to help you!"

"I…I can't…" Namine said, looking down. "I can't…leave this place, Ven."

"Did they threaten you?" I asked. "If they did, it's okay! We'll protect you! Promise." Her strange behavior was beginning to worry me even more, causing more anxiety than ever before. "Hurry, let's go."

I held out my hand for her again; however, she only pulled away even more, widening the already-huge gap between us two. My heart sank. I swallowed, being given the reminder of our relationship compared to hers with Roxas.

_Maybe…it's because she wanted Roxas to come rescue her. _ I thought. _ Not me…_

Still, I tried to keep a smile on, holding my hand out once more.

"Ven…did you notice the shift in Time and Space in the Present plane of which you left for the longest while?"

I blinked. "What?"

"…Your friends, Roxas, and everyone else are in grave danger right now." she continued, softly. "You need to go back and rescue them—instead of me."

"I can't go back without you." I said, firmly. "I won't."

"When you were warped along with Aqua and Terra, the Present plane's time frame froze." said the girl. "I advise you to go back and join Roxas and the others in the Past plane and find a way to stop the Organization—before that time frame is up."

_**! **_I clenched my teeth together.

"But you're the thread that binds the Organization's plans together!" I cried out. "How can we just abandon you here, knowing that we may lose you at any given time at all?!"

The girl tore her eyes away from mine, with her fingers clawing at the white dress.

"We may not have much time to fix things, but we don't have time to lose you either!" I stammered. "Just come back with me, and I can reassure you that everything will get better—as long…" My voice nearly cracked. "As long as you're with Roxas and everyone else, I can promise you that much!"

Then, for a second, I could have sworn that a light flickered on in her bright sky-blue eyes when I said that one name. The one name that managed to waver her heart a little, even by a stir—I knew it did something. She met my eyes hard, and it was there when she knew what I saw—the grief and sorrow embedded in them, threatening to devour her whole. The guilt. The truth.

"…You're more important to him than anyone else in all Worlds." I said.

"…I'm glad."

I exhaled a deep breath. "Well, then." I held my hand out for her in a dramatic gesture and chuckled. "Princess Namine, would you allow me to take you home…to your Prince Charming?"

_I honestly thought…that were such things._

Little by little, the small girl began to approach me, with her hand reaching out for my fingers—ready to take on the warmth, ready to take on the only request I wanted to fulfill from my own behalf…as well as my friends'.

_Almost there… _I thought. _Almost…_

"**Are they empty vessels devoid of hearts?" **

The sudden, deep voice startled me—and we tore back our hands—with five vicious lances piercing into our direction.

"**!" **I was cut off breath, quickly wielding the Keyblade. **"****Xaldin?!"**

"Ah, I see that you recognize Xaldin, the Whirlwind Lancer!" He sneered down, and before I knew it, the older man had a lance right under my chin, the sharp edge nearly cutting into the skin. I swallowed, silently cursing myself for letting down my guard. "You might have heard much about me from your Master, but I have known you since forever…Ventus."

A cold chill shot up my spine. I turned around, elbowed him hard in the stomach, and ran away from him as he winced at the pinching pain.

Xaldin glowered at me, with long, dark bangs falling over both sides of his forehead. His eyes shifted over to the small girl, and as the man turned sharply into her way, his long ponytail whipped around to the side as well. From the side, I saw that he too had long, dark sideburns and thick eyebrows. His wide shoulders immediately forewarned great strength as I was small compared to him.

"Namine, what are you doing?" Xaldin asked, with dark eyes piercing her.

The man then summoned back his lances—two being carried with his left arm, one with his right hand, and the three floating around himself.

I stood in front of Namine, tightening the grip on the Keyblade. We were about ten feet away from him, and for every step he took forward in the familiar black trench-coat, we inched back.

"I won't let you guys keep her!" I yelled out. **"****I'm taking her with me!"**

"Is that so?" Xaldin sneered darkly upon us. "Then, let the battle begin!"

Suddenly, to my surprise, wind began to sweep through the windows of the room, causing the curtains to fly everywhere. My heart tightened with fear as the air whipped their way around Xaldin and his lances. He laughed at my dreaded expression and just before I could move, the man was already running into our direction—fast as the wind itself and with swift, clean motion.

"Get away from here!" I yelled, and Namine quickly went for the door.

At the nick of time, I managed to lock the Keyblade against the first lance and ultimately, deflected it against the other four. I knew there were six in total, and I quickly coiled back, being nearly out of breath—wondering where the last one went.

"Over here!" Xaldin laughed, and feeling the hair stand on at my neck's back, I turned around to block his final hit. "Ah, good block!"

"**!" **My breath was nearly cut off when he threw my Keyblade off path with the weapon, then, summoning another lance at his left, he bashed the pair against my chest. It knocked me back across the white, cold floor until I slammed into the wall, which stood at the opposite side of the room. "Augh!"

"Ventus!" Namine cried out.

She then sketched into her notebook with a crayon. One moment I was lying on the floor, the other—I was already on my feet and just as I began to charge into Xaldin's way, a huge creature—a Moogle, if you will—exploded from nowhere and shoved Xaldin off his feet.

"Don't you hurt Ven!" yelled the girl.

"You two are playing dirty!" the man muttered.

All six lances tore through the stuffed Moogle toy, which surprised both of us, and while the white cotton fell to the floor, I quickly lunged myself toward Xaldin. I slammed the weapon against his right shoulder, and he grabbed hold of the Keyblade—pulling me toward him. I clenched my teeth, attempting to use that force against Xaldin—hoping to tear the Keyblade away by slamming it against his shoulder again. Before I could, the man had already warped five lances to his right.

"Damn!" I cursed softly.

Xaldin was much stronger than me in physical strength, and I knew that as compared to battling Terra, he was also much more powerful with attacks and faster. Then, to my shock, several wind blades swept off my balance and I was being carried back across the room, without the Keyblade.

"!" My head collided with the floor once more, and because I was dropped from a fifteen-feet height, my vision quickly blurred and voices began to fade out.

"Already defeated?" asked Xaldin.

Not a moment was wasted when I summoned back the Keyblade into my right hand, and I struggled to return onto my feet. I nearly fell over, feeling rather dizzy from the fall.

"If it's not over yet," the man continued, "then, let's keep fighting—to the **death!"**

And then…everything began to shift.

I held my breath, unable to think clearly.

Images, faded ones, began to flood my mind.

I fell down to one knee, using the Keyblade for support—to keep me up still.

"What's going on?" Xaldin asked.

"_What did you mean about Terra being a different person?" I asked._

_Vanitas sneered. "Exactly what I said, idiot. The Terra you know will be gone forever."_

_The sinister boy brandished his Keyblade toward me._

"_A Keyblade?" I gritted my teeth._

"_Good." Vanitas said, loudly. "Let's see what you're made of."_

I didn't understand what was going on.

"_It happened when you and I were split into two." said the shadow boy. "The negativity took shape as these monsters. They are what I feel."_

I was already on the floor, unable to hold onto the weapon.

"…_The X-Blade is made from your heart too, idiot. If you destroy it, your heart will vanish forever."_

All six lances were driven toward my vulnerable figure, and as my hand trembled, I slowly reached out the Keyblade once more.

"…_Somewhere out there, there's this tree with star-shaped fruit." Aqua explained. "And the fruit represents an unbreakable connection. So, as long as you and your friends carry good luck charms shaped like it, nothing can ever drive you apart."_

_The blue-haired teenager tossed me an emerald-painted star-charm and Terra an orange one._

"_You'll always find your way back to each other. An unbreakable…" _

I cursed to myself, dragging my entire body into a standing position—ready to fight.

"An…unbreakable connection." I whispered.

In a flash of motion, I charged forward—as all six weapons collided against my force.

And in the distance, I heard her voice, **"****VENTUUUS!"**

_I honestly thought there were such things._

_An unbreakable connection.__  
_

_To always find my way back..._


	37. 36::Roxas::His Origins

**::36::Roxas::His Origins::**

"…And so…" I scratched the crown of my blonde hair. "…you're saying that we're all sandwiched between the Past plane and Present plane of Time?"

The older boy nodded, solemnly. His familiar green eyes darkened. "I destroyed the Hourglass of Time, an artifact that Xemnas held sacred, so we can delay the Present plane's time to further our investigation and to allow us more time to save all Worlds." Replica paused. "I…want to find out more for myself, the Truth beneath all truths."

"The Truth?" I echoed, confused.

"Who are you, Roxas?"

I blinked. "I'm…Roxas."

"Where did you come from?"

"_You're a Nobody, Roxas." a sweet voice whispered to me._

My heart nearly dropped. _**!**_

"…_You were never supposed to exist."_

"You were a part of Sora." Replica said.

I stared in shock. "…What?"

"Roxas, you're a part of Sora—and you're more Sora than anyone else here. Even more than Ventus himself."

"What are you talking about?" I lashed out, suddenly pointing the Keyblade at Replica. "I—I am more myself than anyone else! **I am me, I am Roxas, and I am no one else!"**

However, much to my surprise, a hot teardrop suddenly slipped down from my right eye's corner. I swallowed.

"_Stop that." His blue eyes were soft with concern. "Stop swinging that around. It's not a toy, you know—it's dangerous."_

Being aware of my reckless actions, I slowly dropped the weapon. _**!**_

"I…" I was going to apologize, not knowing what had come over me and not even knowing where the sweet voice had come from. But remembering Ven's words, I quickly became ashamed—feeling my face burn hot from it. "I…"

"…You're Roxas, all right."

I had my head bowed for a while…and slowly, I raised my eyes up to meet his calm, cool orbs.

"You're a hot-tempered brat." said Replica. "There's no way you can ever be like Sora. He's a much well-mannered kid."

* * *

I sat down by the water fountain, the one in the Academy's outdoor center square, and as I listened to the water trickle down into levels of water bodies, I closed my eyes. Replica sat at the other side quietly, enjoying the cool tree shade that blocked out the sun from us. I opened my eyes and looked around, watching the Academy students—future Keyblade wielders—stroll by. There were birds chirping from the distance while the cool breeze fluttered through our clothings.

"It's so peaceful." I said out loud.

"It is." Replica agreed.

A moment of silence.

"We'll need to keep moving." He said, abruptly. "Time is very limited in this realm as we were all sent here to figure out what's exactly going on in the Present plane."

"What are we looking for?" I asked.

"…We need to find the Organization's ultimate weakness." replied the older boy. "We need…to find out ways to stop them from kidnapping the Seven Princesses of Lights. We need forces so strong, that it can overpower them—we need Light."

"We have to find a way to stop them." I murmured. I quickly hopped back onto my feet. "Hey, why don't we go ask the Master himself?"

"Who?"

"Master Eraqus!" I exclaimed. "He's a strong magic-user, so he can definitely see us and be able to help us figure out what's going on!"

"Brilliant!" He smirked. "Love your thinking already!"

"Okay, let's go then!" I smiled. "And while we're at it, explain to me on the way there—about this 'Seven Princesses of Lights—"

"**There you two are."**

**! **I held onto the Keyblade, hesitantly. "Who are you guys?"

"Well, if it isn't Ventus…" A young man with long, silver-blue bangs—slowly approached me as Replica and I glowered at them. His icy eyes flickered back to his partner, a larger man who carried an enormous sword in one hand. "…Shall we just spill it?"

"Spill what?" I asked, pointing the Keyblade toward the two strangers—who were both wearing that familiar black trench-coat uniform. Our school uniform. Or so I had thought. "And what's with everyone wearing our school uniforms? I don't get it!"

"School…uniforms?" the young man laughed. "Was that what you children were told?"

"…**Hey!"** I gritted my teeth.

"Lexaeus, what should we do to mess with Ventus' mind?" the stranger continued.

Lexaeus, the man's partner, only looked over my figure and then, at Replica.

"For a moment, I had thought it was Ventus and Riku whom we had approached." said the wavy-haired man. "…But it appears that we have run into Roxas and Replica, Zexion."

"**What?"** Zexion's cold eyes suddenly widen in surprise. "Seriously?"

"…The two brothers swapped clothes before the invasion took place at the Academy in the Present plane."

"…Hmm…that explains everything." Zexion said, coolly. "…I thought something was amiss when Xaldin told us…that he has captured Ventus in the Castle—"

"**Wait!" **I yelled out. "You guys have Ven?!"

"Ah, I almost forgot that you two are twin brothers…in this Life." said Zexion. He scratched the back of his head. "And with what you had just said, it seems like Lexaeus was right. You _**are **_the legendary Roxas whom we've all been ordered to search for." He paused to sneer at us two. "And to capture."

"Hmph." The bigger guy swung his sword around as to demonstrate his strength, from which I felt the harsh whips of wind blow through me. I tensed up. "Well, shall we begin?"

"Now, let me chat for a little bit first."

"If that is what you wish."

"Now, now…" Zexion's lips tugged at the corner. "…Roxas, we don't have to fight—if you should only surrender yourself to us peacefully."

"**And why should I do that?"** I quickly made a threatening motion to swing the Keyblade at his face, being ready in my battle position. Replica looked over at me. "You have Namine, Sora, Ven, Aqua, and Terra already—and I have no idea why—but I'm not going to give myself up—not before I can bring them all back."

"Hasn't Xemnas spilled at least some of the beans to you?" Zexion slowly raised an eyebrow at my obliviousness. "…I mean, I'm sure he'd told you at least half of the things you needed to hear."

"_Of course, you are, Roxas!" the man exclaimed, excitedly. "You __**are **__Sora's other Half, after all! What you may have known about this World—isn't all what you were supposed to know. And I can tell you this: you are more to Sora than of anyone else that we have encountered."_

I bit my bottom lip.

"Looks like he did." said the young man, looking quite pleased at this turn of event. "…But allow me to finish up then. Besides from all you've heard from Xemnas—we had been sent to capture you, the Hidden Chosen—no—the indirect Chosen One, an indirect one since Sora is apparently unavailable today to save the Universe like he did once before on multiple occasions."

"Don't, Zexion." To my surprise, Replica had intervened. "Don't say it now."

"Say what, Replica?" I asked.

"Once upon a time, there was once a boy named Sora. Darkness came upon his homeland, Destiny Island, and he and his two friends—Riku and Kairi—were separated from each other, all three sent to different Worlds—away from their lovely home."

Zexion shifted his eyes toward Replica but simply ignored him.

"He found out that he was able to wield powerful weapon called the Keyblade and that he was chosen by the Keyblade to save all Worlds from the same Darkness that took him away from his friends and home. He went on a long journey, saving World after World with friends whom he met up and all the while, also searching for his two dear friends."

I swallowed.

"…Along the way, to his surprise, he discovered that his good friend, Kairi, had given her Heart within his when the Darkness came for them. So, he decided to free her by piercing his own Heart—thus, creating a Nobody—a Nobody whose name was none other than…"

Replica, clenching his teeth, shoved me back behind his towering figure. **"Get back!"**

"**!" **I fell back, stumbling over my own two feet. "What's going—"

"**That Nobody was you, Roxas!"** Zexion exclaimed.

I stared. "What?"

_That…can't be right, _I thought. _ That… A Nobody…is just what remains from those who have lost their hearts to Darkness… A Nobody is just…_

The Academy had taught me two things: there are two definitions of a Nobody. There is the Nobody class, and then, there's the Nobody _thing. _It had just dawned to me that since Zexion was talking about the Legend, the old myth that had been passed down for generations, it could only mean one absolute truth.

"Replica…is this…" I could barely recognize my own voice. "But…how…"

"Roxas, you are not needed to coexist with Sora." the young man continued on, coldly. "With you, you alone can provide Sora with the other half of his Heart—and unleash his full potential—so, we can use him to unlock Kingdom Hearts for us all!"

I was a _thing._

"**NO!" **I screamed. Blinded by hate, I got back onto my feet—only to clash the Keyblade against Lexaeus' enormous sword, creating golden sparks. **"YOU'RE LYING TO ME!" **The flames in my Heart were burning…burning… **"YOU ARE LYING!"**

Hot tears flooded my vision.

And whether I was still that _thing, _I didn't know anymore. I mean, I was born human...but...

_"Hey," Axel raised an eyebrow at me as I lifted up the shackles around both of my wrists. "You okay?"_

"Everything you were told are lies already, Roxas!" Zexion laughed.

"**My twin brother is Ventus!" **I quickly pivoted my foot to strike at Lexaeus, only to lock my weapon against his again in combat. **"My best friends are Axel and Xion!" **I dodged a blow and blocked the sword with swiftness, nearly suffering from a cut. **"I am a student from the Academy, dreaming of being a Keyblade Master!" **I then evaded another attack. **"I want to save Namine, Sora, Aqua—" **I dodged again. **"Terra, and everyone—"**

"_So, your mind's made up?" Axel asked._

"_Why did the Keyblade choose me?" I said, out loud. "I have to know!"_

"…_You can't turn on the Organization." The red-head's eyes pleaded to me. "You get on their bad side, and they'll destroy you!" He then stepped up, and even in the darkness, I could see that he was trying hard to restrain himself. _

"_No one would miss me." I said, looking over my shoulder._

"_That's not true…"_

My heart stopped.


	38. 37::Roxas::Key of Destiny

**::37::Roxas:: Key of Destiny::**

**"ROXAS!" **Replica cried out.

Maybe it was Hate…or maybe it was just the Darkness, but whatever it was, I just didn't care anymore. Clenching my teeth, I sharply turned to Lexeaus, and it all came so quickly-the enormous black sword rising above my head. Before I knew it, another Keyblade appeared in my left, and I charged my way toward the huge man, with both weapons in each hand.

"What?!" Zexion gasped. "H-He has **two Keyblades!"**

**"Roxas!" **Replica yelled. "Stop!"

I brushed his words aside and merely crushed Lexeaus' sword with the first blow of the right Keyblade-before finishing it off with the weapon in my left hold. The man, shocked and defenseless, staggered back. I whipped around and bashed my right weapon into his rock-hard stomach, only to be followed by the left one.

"You're falling into their trap, Roxas!" Replica continued. "You have to stop before you fall into complete Darkness! They want you to hate everything!"

**"So what!" **I yelled back, determined to finish my opponent off. **"I'm me, and I'm not something that they can use! I can co-exist with or without Sora!"**

The boy's green eyes widened, shocked from the words that had just left my lips.

"…Y-you…" Replica stopped, gritting his teeth. "Have you gone mad?!"

**"The bastards!" **I averted my attention to Zexion, who cowered back while holding a thick book in his arm. "I'll take you two on, **right now!"**

"Well, isn't that wise of you to make such a bold decision?" the silver-haired teenager mocked.

"Less talking and more ass-kicking!" I yelled out, swinging the Keyblade at Zexion.

He quickly evaded the attack with ease. "…Say, Roxas, for you to be so angry," the young man

paused to smirk. "…Does that mean you managed to remember something of the distant past?"

I pointed one Keyblade at him while holding onto Oathkeeper with my other grip.

"And I have to say…do you know what kind of Keyblade you're pointing at me with?" Zexion continued, slowly. "You might have been taught by the Academy that every student there wields a particular weapon. But in your case, did you know…" His aqua eyes trailed up and down the golden handle…and then, the silver blade. "…that what you're holding now is called the Kingdom Key?"

"_Xion, Roxas is __**RAPING MEEEEEE!" **__Axel screamed._

"_Well, maybe it's because you're trying to steal his __**KEYBLADE AGAIN!" **__Xion hollered back from her room._

_**"**__**But…IT LOOKS BETTER THAN MINE!"**_

"**!" **I hesitantly lowered the weapon down while Lexaeus walked on over to Zexion's side. "…Kingdom…Key?" I narrowed down my eyebrows, struggling…struggling to understand the Keyblade I was in possession of. "What's so special about it?"

"Answer us." Replica had been standing by me. "Zexion, you should know."

The tension was nearly unbearable, two enemies on each side, locking eye contact and refusing to look away for even one second.

"Axel knew about it." Lexaeus said.

I swallowed.

"Of course, Axel knew about it." added Zexion. "Why did you think he was so keen on touching that weapon of yours? He knew everything, but he didn't tell you, right?"

"Axel…knew?" I echoed back, softly. I stopped. "Wait… How do you guys know Axel?"

"Which makes him all the more suspicious!" said the silver-haired youth. "Don't you think there's something going on, Roxas? Something he hid from you? Something…just something you weren't supposed to know—other than you being a Nobody, Sora's Nobody—"

_**CLANG!**_

He reacted quick, and I gave him credit for that.

The Kingdom Key had met with Lexaeus' axe sword, which resulted in flying hot sparks. I seethed and brought down the Oathkeeper over his head. The man's right eye lit up for a moment, and before I knew it, he simply threw his entire weight against the blade—forcing the twin Keyblades off him and knocking me off my feet.

I cursed beneath my breath.

"Thank you, Lexaeus!" a familiar voice yelled out.

I looked up, and what I saw—caused me to choke.

"Hello there, buddy!" I hesitated, blocking the man's flaming chakrams with the Kingdom Key. "Aren't you just blown away by my entry?"

The same smirk.

The same green eyes.

The same red hair.

"**Axel?!"** I gasped in horror. My heart dropped. "Th…That's impossible!"

"Aw, I'm so hurt!" Axel sneered back at me.

I looked over my shoulder, only to see Replica engaged in combat with Lexaeus.

I turned back to Axel once more. "But…why?" I asked him. "…Why are you doing this?"

"Because!" the red-head said, rolling his eyes. "You see, Roxas, being nice can be such a pain in the ass sometimes! The Darkness was obviously winning by a milestone; otherwise, we wouldn't need such a handicap—this time-traveling and shit!"

I didn't understand. I thought there was no way for Axel to get through the loop of space and time. I bit my bottom lip, with both grips on the weapons—shaking. I was sweating under the glare of Axel, who had always been my best friend.

_But…what is he doing? _I asked myself.

"…Say, I tell you what, Roxas."

I gulped and met his green eye.

"Why don't you ditch this little party, cut the hassle and all the work, and come back to the Organization with me?" the man asked, still spinning around the red chakrams. "Just like the old days—you, me, and Xion."

"…What?" I was more confused than ever before. "…Xion's there?"

"You got that right." said Axel. "And…she's waiting for you, Roxas. She's safe. After all, that Academy we all went too—lied to us about everything. The Organization isn't all that bad."

I blinked my eyes. "…Wait…Xion's really there?"

"Yeah!" He flashed a smile at me. "How about it?"

"But…what about Namine?" I asked.

"She's okay! You see, it was all a huge misunderstanding! We only wanted to save her, Roxas!"

"…From what?" My voice…came out as a soft whisper. "…What are you talking about?"

_Back…to the Organization? _I looked down at the weapons I was bearing. _…__Me, Axel…and Xion._

"…_Roxas, believe me." Namine added. "…We will meet again when everything blows over."_

I looked back at Axel.

"_I'm glad." I could feel her smile through those small words. "…The fact that I'__m a Somebody in your mind…makes me happy."_

Without a second thought, I dashed right into Axel, whipping the Kingdom Key right across his face. The flames plunged at my right arm, which caused me to scream, and I quickly struck his stomach with the other Keyblade. I spun around, digging one weapon after another against his chest—rotating like an almost unstoppable force.

"**YOU'RE NOT AXEL!" **I screamed out. **"****You're just an illusion!"**

"Why, you little…!" Zexion, who had re-emerged himself from the puppet, cowered back with one hand against his chest. "How did you know?!"

"The answer…" My fingers slowly went up to my chest as well. "…was in my Heart!"

"You don't have a Heart." The man retorted.

"…Takes one to know one." I smirked.

I heard a scream filled with horror from behind—and I turned around to see what was going on. Right before my eyes, right before Replica, something…was happening to Lexaeus—and I gasped, unable to believe what was literally happening.

Lexaeus had fallen down to his knees, with the enormous axe sword on the side, and his entire body…was disintegrating into black streams of smoke and sand!

"What's…" I averted my attention back to Zexion, who too had fallen to the ground. "What's going on! Zexion!"

"No…Marluxia…" Zexion whispered, lying limp on his stomach. "…You promised…"

"Marluxia?" I repeated. "Wait, tell me! What's happening?"

Though he had been my enemy, I couldn't help but felt…a bit of pity of him and Lexaeus. This feeling.

"…Your Kingdom Key…" The young man almost smiled at me as I knelt down by his eroding body. "…is the one and only key, Key of Destiny."

I looked down at the shining weapon, which glinted at me innocently.

"…Why?" I asked.

"…It unlocks Darkness…and frees the Heart." He explained, softly. "It holds unimaginable power, opening the locks of what must be opened…but it only shares its knowledge…with the user, one who is worthy of wielding it." His aqua eyes then began to dim out. "And that user…the one who was chosen…is you, Roxas."

The man's body was about halfway gone, swept away by the wind.

"What…are you?" I whispered, horrified by the being himself. "…Who are you?"

"_Kingdom Hearts will complete us." the young man said to me. "That's the Organization's goal."_

**! **I stared back at the dying figure before me. "Zexion…you're…"

"Our hate was what bound us to this Universe for centuries, Roxas." He explained, faintly. "It was just so great…that our Nobodies didn't want us to leave for the next life cycle…and look at what we've become, fallen back to the Darkness—just because of losing a petit fight." Zexion then closed his eyes. "…And we waited to find salvation…waiting…for all the Ancient Heroes…of Light to release us from this torturous curse."

I reached for my Heart. This pain…

"Roxas, do it now."

"What?" I couldn't believe what I was hearing… "You want me…to…"

"Yes, I want you…to free both me and Lexaeus—no, to free me as Ienzo and Aeleus!" He begged me. "Now! Pierce this place with Light! Free us from our hate by allowing us to finally see the Light!"

I nodded and got back onto my feet, holding the Kingdom Key high over my head.

Just like in my dreams.

"Sora."

I looked back over my shoulder to see Replica smiling.

"Just like him." He said.

_Sora… _I thought to myself.

"Sorry, Sora." I whispered out. "Doing your job without your permission."

And with that, a bright white crown seal lit up from beneath my feet. Light quickly circulated around my figure, with wind. Light shot out from the Keyblade itself and into a huge Keyhole, the Keyhole of the World. Once it was hit, the entire sky lit up—overflowing with bright light, nearly blinding me and Replica as we shielded our eyes.

We opened our eyes, and both Zexion and Lexaeus were gone.

Instead, before us, two orbs of light floated about.

"Thank you." They spoke.

I swallowed and reached out for them.

But before I got to touch them, the orbs exploded into a million fragments.

"…You saved them." Replica said.

I stared at my empty fingers.

"…You allowed them to finally see the very Light they had been waiting for."

And I nodded. "…Yeah."


	39. 38::Xion::Ghost of the Past

**38::Xion::Ghost of the Past::**

"Riku, what do you think is going on?" I asked.

I was kneeling down before bed of yellow flowers while Aerith and Tifa were on the other side of the run-down church. My eye darted over into their direction for a moment where I saw that they were both chatting quietly to themselves. I looked back at Riku, who too, was paying careful attention to the plants. He was down on one knee, intrigued by the flowers as well.

"…I'm not sure." He answered. "But…I know we all fell into that porthole. Next thing I knew, we were all separated." Riku paused. "And the Kairi they were talking about—didn't seem like the Kairi we were looking for."

"What do you mean?"

"…The Kairi in school now is the same Kairi we know, but…at the same time, she's not." He met my eye. "Let's just say that it's almost like you owning two Paopu charms." To my surprise, Riku reached into his jean pocket and pulled out the silver star into the sunlight. "…The same thing but different."

"I see." I stared at the way how he handled the charm quietly. "…Was that for Kairi?"

He hesitated but then, seeing that there was no way around it, Riku nodded. "…I was going to give it to her." The young man stopped. "But…thinking back on it, I'm glad I didn't."

"According to legend, if two people share one, their destinies become intertwined. They'll remain a part of each other's lives no matter what." I closed my eyes. "…I think even if Kairi doesn't receive one from you, she'd always want you to be a part of her life no matter what, Riku."

"You should have it."

"Eh?" I opened my eyes, shocked to hear those words coming from Riku's lips. "What?"

"Keep it." My cheeks were flaming hot as he shoved the necklace into my hand. "I'm not giving it to you because I can't give it to her." The older teenager smiled softly at me, with his long silver hair falling over to the side as he cocked his head. "I'm giving it to you because you deserve it."

_I…deserve it? _I thought.

Wait.

By saying that…is Riku implying…that by giving me this, this Paopu charm, that he…wants me to be a part of his life—no matter what?

"**!" **Suddenly, Riku shot up to his feet and in a flash, he was already wielding the Way to Dawn—a Keybade embedded with wings, angel and devil. "Something's not right."

I looked up and from the roof holes, massive dark clouds were rolling in throughout the skies overhead. I swallowed.

"You two!" It was Tifa, addressing us. "I'm taking you both with Aerith back to the house!"

"Do you know what's happening?" asked Riku.

"Something's…not right with the World." Aerith said, faintly. "…Almost like…the World itself is changing."

_Riku!_

"Namine…?" I whispered, unable to believe what I was hearing.

Riku's bright eyes widened. "It's her, all right!"

_Listen to me, both of you!_

I stiffened. **!**

_You are now placed in the Past, and as of right now, Time is being intervened by an unknown location—whereas the current Time Plane is being split into two!_

"But…that's impossible!" I cried out. "A time plane being split into two?!"

"So, you're saying…" The older boy narrowed down his eyebrows. "…that we're in a time loop and things just aren't flowing the way a **normal **time loop would flow."

_This can only mean the works of an outside force, someone who is aware of the future, our present time._

"If the Past plane is being divided up, that can only mean destruction of all existences as we know it!" I stopped. "…and if that interferes with people's existences, doesn't that mean it changes the memories of those on this side and the area where Roxas is in—right now?"

_That's correct._

"If two people of the same existence crosses over a common time frame of this divided Past plane, they will collide and cease to exist." Riku murmured. "This…is obviously not good."

"Because it's impossible to coexist—two people of the same being in the same space and time." I added. "If two people of the same existence were to meet, it will only destroy…"

"We understand."

I came face-to-face with the calm Aerith, whose gentle hands caressed the bangs over my eyes.

"If what was said is true, then, you and Riku should get out there and do your job." She said, softly to me. "I believe in you."

"…Her voice sounds familiar." I met Tifa's eye. "Where is that voice calling from?"

I whipped around, staring hard into the rooftop cracks—hoping…hoping that…

"I don't know." I said, with my voice cracking. "She's very…very far away."

Tifa then patted the crown of my head, ruffling the top of my short black hair. "She may be far—but she may also be closer than you think."

_That's all I can say for now._

"Wait!" Riku called out. "Where are you?! Who is this person interfering with Time?!"

_Marluxia._

And just like that, She was gone with the wind.

"Hey!" I yelled out. **"Hey, come back!"**

Silence.

"**Come back!" **I cried out.

"In three days, be ready for a grave and ominous event."

I turned around, only to see Riku standing in front of both Tifa and Aerith. I rushed over to his side, about to speak when he met my gaze—short and briefly.

"Prepare detailed observations and a secure escape route to evacuate the Academy students down to the town's train station once danger strikes." said Riku. "Inform Master Eraqus of this, and I am sure he would understand what I will be talking about."

Tifa nodded. "All right."

_And save Namine! _I wanted to shout out.

The dark-haired woman looked over at me once more, and I tried to put on a smile.

_Save her… _I thought. _Save—_

"You can't."

I turned to Riku, who had just spoken. "What do you mean?"

"You can't…save her." He said, firmly.

I scrunched together my eyebrows, willing for my eyes to pierce against his. The front church doors slowly closed with a soft thud, and I briskly walked past him back to where all the flowers were at.

"**Xion!" **The silver-haired teenager cried out. He said my name with such alarm that I glanced back at him—only to realize… **"XION!"**

It was only too late when I caught a glimpse of the familiar black body-suit and golden eyes. The intruder's arm shot out toward me, grabbing my neck tightly. I couldn't breathe—couldn't even scream—and when I tried to move his hand away from me, I was tossed aside to the flowers like a rag doll. I choked, lying on the side—gasping for air.

"**NOOOO!" **Riku was already sprinting head-first into Vanitas—but much to his surprise, a splash of water came for him—and he quickly blocked it with the Keyblade. **"!"**

"**Dance, water, dance!"** a voice sang out.

I cursed beneath my breath, trying to crawl my way to Riku.

But I couldn't.

Vanitas' wicked eye met mine, and I swallowed, frozen in my current position.

Two men dressed in a similar fashion as me, long black trench-coats with hoods, stood before Riku. Both of them finally flipped off their hoods, revealing a young man with blonde hair and a few strands against his forehead—and an older man with platinum blonde mustache and stubbed chin. The young man turned around, only to be startled by my very presence.

I could've sworn that guy…seemed almost happy to see me, having nearly dropped his blue guitar.

"…Demyx?" I whispered out, peering out into his face.

"Demyx, pay attention to over here." The older man ordered. "With luck, your fate may be changed!"

Vanitas crossed his arms, standing by the two men. **"Get your game on already, Luxord."**

I blinked, and before I could brace myself, Luxord—with a swift hand motion—brought up human-sized black-and-white cards from the ground below—separating Riku from us.

"**Xion!" **I heard him yell out.

I began to panic. **"Riku!"**

They're after me.

For some odd reason, they seemed to have stopped chasing Roxas.

And now, they want me.

"Now, you." Luxord slowly got down on one knee and tilted his head. "You, who hold the winning cards to this game, knows everything we must know to achieve our ultimate goal."

I clenched my teeth.

"…**Lab rat." **

I looked up, and Vanitas' face was merely inches away from mine—sinister and dark.


	40. 39::Zack::The Number Seven

**39::Zack::The Number Seven::**

_I felt…warm, gentle hands running through my hair._

_Small hands._

As my eyes slowly opened, I was almost blinded by the warm light.

"Hey, Zack."

The voice belonged to Axel, the hothead who sat by my bedside, along with Leon. For a moment, my drowsy eyes began to wander around the blank ceiling where the old humming fan spun and then toward the two young men. The end of my lips tugged, and I stifled a soft laugh.

"I thought I died." I chuckled, weakly. "What happened?"

"If you got killed by a bookshelf, I'd say that's the most pathetic way to die as a hero." Leon said, crossing his arms. He got up from his chair and walked over to the entrance way.

"Wait, were you guys worried about me?" I asked, sitting up in bed.

Axel swallowed.

"Aww…" I laughed. "You two are the best friends I can ever ask for!"

"Aerith saved you."

"Eh?" I turned to Axel. "What?"

"Aerith." He answered. "The gardener's assistant. She saved you."

"Come again?" I raised an eyebrow. "Aerith?"

Suddenly, there were soft knocks at the entrance way. Axel and I then turned to look, and standing next to Leon was none other than Tifa. With long dark hair and smiling eyes, Tifa approached us two with steady, graceful footsteps.

"Have you guys seen Cloud?" she asked us.

"No, we haven't." Axel replied.

"And you…" The woman tilted her head in curiosity. "…You must be Zack Faire."

"Yes!" I smiled. "I didn't expect to be so popular with the beautiful ladies now."

"You could've gotten hurt."

"Hm?" I blinked my eyes.

"You were lucky that Aerith arrived at the nick of time to push you out of the way."

"…Then…"

"No, she's all right." Tifa chimed in. "I just thought you needed to know that."

"Oh…" I stopped. "Then, may I see her?"

"She's tending to her flowers next door now in the church."

"All right then." I kicked off the blankets and rose from the bed—back onto my feet. "I should go thank her right now—" I paused. "And…whose house are we in?"

"Aerith's place." Leon answered.

"You know, it's weird…" Tifa looked over at Axel and then back at me. "Aerith's place…is starting to be a safe haven for people like us in ominous events." She paused to think, making a face while at it. "…First, that Riku and Xion…"

"**Wait!" **Axel's eyes widen. **"Riku…and X-Xion?" **

Before we could stop him, the redhead shot out of his seat and grabbed Tifa by the shoulders, shaking her.

"Hey, Axel, man!" I cried out. "Calm down!"

"Tifa, you say…that you ran into Riku and Xion?!" he continued on. "When? Where?"

"**H-Hey!" **

_This isn't good! _I thought.

"**Where are they now?!" **Axel asked. His green eyes seemed so desperate, drowned in agony and sorrow altogether. "Where?!"

**WHOOSH!**

I flinched, and before we all knew it, the enormous, familiar Buster sword had been pointed at Axel. My wide eyes then softened, and I sighed.

"Put that weapon down, Cloud." I ordered, firmly.

The young blonde's blue eyes didn't waver from Axel as the redhead slowly dropped his hands from Tifa's shoulders. When they finally did, he turned to her and saw that she was already in her brawling position with the gloved fists out. The eyes quickly met with mine, and he gently withdrew the sword…like a puppy backing into a sitting position.

"Sorry." He whispered.

"Now, what did I tell you, Cloud?" I asked. "Don't point your weapon at people so recklessly." I placed my hands on my hips. "Remember that?"

"Yeah…"

"And Axel, calm down." I said. "You're only going to hurt people like that." I looked over to Tifa, checking if she was harmed in any way. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." Tifa replied.

Cloud's eye met with mine once more. "What do you have to say, buddy?" I asked.

"…I'm sorry…" The young man hesitated for a moment. "…Axel…"

"…It's fine." The redhead, realizing his foolishness, sighed in frustration. "I…was at fault too. Sorry, Tifa…and Cloud."

"There!" I smiled. "No one's hurt."

* * *

"So, that's what happened." Running my hands through my black hair, I sighed, sitting on top of the bed.

Tifa, who had been standing this entire time with Cloud, explained the story of how she met with Riku and Xion. She claimed that both she and Aerith were in the church three days ago when two teenagers fell from the sky and through the rooftop. They landed on the flowers, which was a soft landing—I suppose, and were quickly brought back to Aerith's home. The two woke up and at first, they were acting strange when they were informed that their friend, Kairi, was at school while they were ditching classes. Tifa took note that Academy students don't usually make it past the campus security (heavily guarded by Tifa, Cloud, Vincent, and many others) to actually skip classes but kept that to herself. She also thought it was strange that she saw Riku and Xion attending school on the same day—but found them in Town soon afterwards. There was no way…

Then, dark clouds came in, and the weirder thing is that it was only cloudy at around where Aerith lived. The Riku and Xion they met informed them that a grave event would occur in three days and that Tifa and Aerith must report to the Master about the message. Tifa and Aerith then left the church and when they came back, the two had already disappeared as though nothing had ever happened. They tried asking around but no one had ever seen the teenagers either.

"…So, that mansion…" Axel began to speak. "Xemnas' Headquarters…was actually the black hole of time-traveling."

I turned to Axel. "…Is that why Time hasn't moved forward here?"

"…If I'm correct," the redhead continued, "…there was a local rumor that Xemnas had a magical sacred item called the Hourglass of Star Loop Seven." He stopped. "But no one actually knew if such item ever existed as Xemnas never lets people come over to his place. They say that the Hourglass is the only thing that keeps Time as it is—and if one breaks it, chaos will come forth as Time will spiral out of control, changing the past, present, and future."

"Star Loop Seven?" Cloud raised an eyebrow. "That's…ironic."

"Hm?" I blinked my eyes. "What's the matter?"

"…What does the number seven have to do with it?" Cloud asked. "A time loop of seven days, repeating days? Hours?"

"Actually…" Our heads whipped over toward the entrance doorway where the Master stood, wearing the usual calm, serene expression. "…Seven means…the Seven Lights versus Thirteen Darknesses."

"**!" **My eyes widened. "What?"

The Ancient Legend.

"But if it's such a sacred item, why would Xemnas break it?" Leon asked, carefully. "Something's not right."

"Marluxia did it." The Master answered.

"Who's…that?" we all simultaneously asked.

"One of Xemnas' disciples." The man replied, with eyes growing weary. "I had foreseen this in my visions. He, like Xemnas, was unsatisfied with his master's progress."

There was heavily silence.

Which got me thinking.

"Master." When I spoke up, all heads turned to me. "…In this life, who are the Seven Lights?"

The black-haired man smiled gently. "Terra, Aqua, Ventus, Sora, Kairi, Riku…."

There was a long pause.

I swallowed.

And his lips finally breathed out the last name.

"…**and Roxas."**


End file.
